An official at the southern port in Port Sudan confirmed that there were financial setbacks that followed the blockage of the routes connecting the east to the rest of the country.
Khartoum: AlTaghyeer
The Director of the General Administration of the Southern Port in Port Sudan, Ahmed Mahjoub, revealed that the containers terminal has been undergoing daily financial setbacks.
He pointed out that the port has been closed since September 17 by supporters of the Supreme Council of Beja Tribal Leaders, and acknowledged that the Beja have legitimate issues that require an urgent solution.
Mahjoub stated in a television interview with BNTV’s “As Follows” that the central delegation focused on the issue of opening oil pipelines for the state of South Sudan, and also put forward proposals for the Beja council, which requested a week’s time to respond.
He noted the great damage caused to the companies and workers at the port, whose income has completely stopped, and expressed his hope that the crisis will be resolved soon.
The southern port director stressed that movement of goods within the southern port has completely stopped, as did all loading and unloading operations and associated activities, which led to huge material loss for the state and Sudan as a whole.
Fuel Stock
The Minister of Energy and Oil, Jadein Ali Obeid, also explained to the BNTV program that he sat down the Beja council to discuss the port’s, the national road’s, and oil lines’ closure.
He stated that the government will look into the unrest in eastern Sudan through a conference that includes all parties in the east as soon as possible.
Jadein pointed out that there are negative effects to closing the port, and praised Beja’s response to opening exports to South Sudan’s oil, considering it a step in the right path.
The Minister expected that the “eastern track” initiative in the Juba Agreement would be frozen until the holding of the comprehensive conference.
He explained that the fuel depots in Khartoum have sufficient stocks and that the situation is completely stable, but the closure will affect the electricity sector more because of the presence of Ference trucks seized in Port Sudan.
Jadain stressed that the electric power supply will be stable until the end of this crisis.
Wheat Supply
In turn, the rapporteur of the Central Chamber of Wheat, Asaad Mukhtar, stressed during the “As Follows” TV show appearance that the stockpile of wheat suffices the country’s needs for more than a month.
He pointed out that the situation is reassuring and there is no problem due to the closure of eastern Sudan.
Mukhtar said that there is a stockpile of wheat in the northern state and a stockpile in the state of Al-Gezira and Al-Ubayyid, ready for use if need arises to transfer it to Khartoum, in addition to the large stock in Port Sudan silos.
He noted that the Chamber employed a contingency plan and took measures that included reducing the daily wheat supply to avoid the effects of the closure of eastern Sudan.
