An oil facility in South Sudan | Credit | Jok Solomun/Reuters
The Minister of Petroleum has officially announced the resumption of operations in the Dar Petroleum Operating Company (DPOC) oilfields in blocks 3 and 7, effective on January 8, 2025.
Puot Kang Chuol, the Minister of Petroleum, stated that the
issues that led to the halting of oil flow, including the force majeure
declared by the Government of Sudan on February 15, 2024, have been resolved.
"There were several concerns from the partners about
the technical readiness of the pipeline, lifting of force majeure, and security
assurance,” said Chuol during a press briefing on Tuesday in Juba.
“Those concerns were addressed by letters from BAPCO, the
company responsible for pipeline, on the readiness of the pipeline itself.”
On January 4, 2025, the Sudanese Ministry of Energy and
Petroleum officially lifted the force majeure, clearing the way for operations
to resume. Kang stated that this decision has brought all parties into
agreement to restart the initiative.
"From here today, we will not allow one minute, because
we have talked, we have agreed, in this room today, we have partners, we have
DPOC, and we have all agreed that tomorrow is the day," Kang asserted,
emphasizing the unified commitment to move forward.
According to Kang, the oilfields in blocks 3 and 7 are
expected to reach a production target of 90,000 barrels per day in the first
phase. He noted that the target would not be achieved immediately but remains
the goal within the first six months of resumption.
“This is what the pipeline will accommodate in the first
phase, and then thereafter, if we have the capacity to increase more than that,
we shall do so,” he revealed.
The minister firmly believes that the resumption of oil
production in blocks 3 and 7 will help revitalize the country's struggling
economy and strengthen its oil sector.
“We also recognize that more than 70% of our oil production
comes from DPOC, but we believe with tomorrow's resumption, that resources will
be back on the table.”
He expressed his gratitude to the country’s international partners for their pivotal role in ensuring the successful resumption.