South Sudan’s newly appointed national minister of Petroleum in the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU), Dak Duop Bichiok, has said his ministry is working to ensure that the oil production in the country should increase by July 2016.

Minister Dak said that he has set up a team of 21 members to work on the process to increase the oil production, adding that the team will kick off with the implementation of the reform and review in the oil sector as stipulated in the August 2015 peace agreement.

“We have formed a technical committee of 21 members chaired by the Under-secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum, Engineer Mohamed Lino, to work out plans for reform and review in the oil sector,” Minister Dak said. He added that the review process will include oil companies operating in the country.

Minister Dak took over the petroleum ministry from his predecessor, Stephen Dhieu Dau, in accordance with the executive power sharing in the peace agreement which gave the petroleum ministry to the opposition faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM-IO).

Oil production in South Sudan reduced significantly from the beginning of the two years of the civil war when almost all the oilfields in Unity state were shut down as well as some others in Upper Nile state.

It reduced from over 300,000 barrels a day in 2013 to about 165,000 barrels per a day in 2014 at the peak of the war.

The reduction of the oil production, which the nation depended on for 98% of its budget, coupled with reduction in global oil prices, has resulted to lack of revenues to run the government.

Minister Dak, a veteran politician, was formerly a national minister in Khartoum before the split of South Sudan from the rest of the Sudan in 2011. He was also governor of Upper Nile state for several years.

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Sudan and China have signed an agreement to construct the first nuclear powerhouse in the east African country.

The framework agreement to develop peaceful uses of nuclear energy in Sudan was inked following the first meeting of the China-Sudan Joint Energy Cooperation Commission in Khartoum.

In December 2012, Sudan announced an agreement with China to build a research nuclear reactor, with the approval of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

According to a government official at that time, the reactor aimed to conduct research and scientific applications, and to encourage the use of atomic energy. Sudan carries out 10 projects with the help of the Arab Atomic Energy Agency.

The Sudanese Ministry of Water Resources and Electricity has started the actual preparations for producing power using the nuclear energy in cooperation with the Sudanese Atomic Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency, as the first nuclear plant is expected to be built in 2020.

The visiting Chinese delegation for the joint energy cooperation meetings is chaired by Nur Bekri, Director of the Chinese National Energy Administration, while the Sudanese side is chaired by the Minister of Finance Badr al-Din Mahmoud.

Speaking after the signing of the framework agreement, Mahmoud said the two sides agreed to discuss the problems that energy production is facing in Sudan and to reach effective solutions.

He added that they will also work to solve challenges facing the new projects, especially Al-Foula electricity plan and the transmission network in South Kordofan.

The government says the lack of funds and economic sanctions impede its efforts to extend electricity service and cover areas in Darfur and South Kordofan.

President Omer al-Bashir met the Chinese delegation on Monday, and discussed bilateral ties and means of bolstering them further.

Al-Bashir directed following the meeting to develop cooperation with China in areas of economy and trade, and expand it in fields of oil, gas, renewed energy, agricultural and industrial investment and infrastructure, said a statement issued following the meeting.

China has invested more than $20 billion in Sudan mostly in the oil sector during the past two decades. Beijing provides low-interest loans and weapons transfers in return for oil.

Minister Mahmoud said they reached an agreement with China to strengthen oil capabilities, to build new facilities and additional oil exportation ports on Red Sea.

Also, they agreed that Chinese companies will explore oil in new blocks, and increase the production of existing fields, besides an agreement for gas exploration and production.

The minister announced that the Chinese oil investments in Sudan have reached 17 billion dollars.

Speaking at the joint meeting; the Minister of Oil and Gas, Mohamed Zayed Aw, said that Sudan exploited only small amounts of its oil reserves, and called on China to increase its investment in the oil sector.

On his part, the Minister of Water Resources, Irrigation and Electricity, Mutaz Musa, pointed out that the ministry is implementing 155 electricity projects with China at a cost of 10 billion dollars.

He said that his government will fund the $10 billion projects from multiple sources, adding that the five-year plan includes power plants and dams.

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South Sudan’s main referral hospital has been without power for seven consecutive days, as medical practitioners used candles and torches to aid work.

The country’s ministry of finance, health and electricity and dams is yet to officially explain the cause of the current power crisis.

Workers at Juba Teaching hospital confirmed the power problem at the facility has persisted for about a week.

Unconfirmed reports say for doctors to carry out an emergency operation on patient in a critical condition, relatives would be asked to provide fuel to run the hospital generator during an operation.

This situation, officials said, had never ever occurred in the institution’s history.

A medical source speaking on condition of anonymity said that medical personnel had to use oxygen cylinders for patients who needed oxygen and candles to light some general wards as they do not have fuel to run the generators.

The hospital’s sensitive areas such as the Neonatal intensive care unit that utilizes incubators for the premature babies and the operating theatres have been affected by the power failure because the hospital lacks backup generators.

The main referral institution has since failed to secure fuel to run its standby generators.

Meanwhile, health ministry officials say their counterparts at the finance, petroleum, and the electricity and dams ministries were notified about the problem, but no action has been taken.

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The East African Community and Belgium have held talks aimed at cooperation in the energy and education sectors.

According to a release, the Belgian Ambassador to Tanzania who is also his country’s envoy to the EAC Paul Cartier made the revelation while holding discussions with the EAC Secretary General Ambassador Liberat Mfumukeko in Arusha.

The energy sector in the EA region has seen a surge in foreign interest, with several European and East Asian countries like China signing bilateral and multilateral cooperation agreements.

Meanwhile, during their discussions Amb Mfumukeko also briefed the Belgian envoy about the proposed reforms at the EAC Secretariat geared towards cost cutting, and pledged to make an official statement at a scheduled meeting with key development partners on June 7 in Dar es Salaam.
On his part Amb Cartier congratulated Amb Mfumukeko for his appointment as EAC SG and noted the impressive progress in the EAC integration process.
Commenting on the progress of the dialogue process for Burundi Peace Talks currently being held in Arusha, the Belgian envoy hailed the Facilitator of the Inter-Burundi Dialogue, former Tanzanian President Benjamini Mkapa for being able to mobilize a large number of representatives to attend the dialogue. At least 83 delegates have turned up representing various stakeholders in Burundi.
The Ambassador however expressed concerns about the negative publicity of the event in some of the media channels in the region. Both Secretary General and the Ambassador were in agreement with the clarion call by the Facilitator for renouncing the violence in Burundi.

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