Face of Truth: The Republican Palace on Tender..!
Ibrahim Shglawi
Before delving into our article, it is only proper to begin with an apology to our dear readers for the period of absence. With sincere thanks to all who reached out, checked in, or wished us well, we return to continue opening one of the most critical strategic files in Sudan: the electricity sector — a file that cannot be reduced to mere power outages or malfunctioning stations. It embodies — at this very moment — the essence of the national crisis between a state struggling to rise and a war threatening to devour the future.
In the previous article, titled “Sudan’s Electricity: The Dilemma of Sabotage and Mismanagement,” we opened a window onto the energy sector and received a large number of messages in response. Most of them highlighted the importance of the announced plan to develop the electricity sector — a plan that represents one of the main pillars of national reconstruction, an essential condition for the return of displaced citizens, and a cornerstone for reviving industrial and productive activity in the country.
However, amid these correspondences, it is necessary to pause at an important clarification received from Engineer Osama Abdullah Abu Al-Hassan, Director of the Merowe Power Station, who kindly commented on what was mentioned regarding the repeated shutdowns of the dam. He explained that the dam is operating efficiently and that in some cases power cuts occur due to protection systems being automatically activated when main transformers trip — as happened recently with the Al-Murakhiyat transformer — to protect the turbines from catastrophic damage resulting from overspeed.
While this clarification is valuable, the more important issue lies in the government’s silence regarding the strategic electricity plan, which remains undisclosed. This renders it more like a “secret development plan” about which the public knows almost nothing, except for a few passing statements. The matter, however, requires a press conference that reassures the Sudanese people and shows how those responsible for this vital sector think and plan for the future.
Sudan today stands on the threshold of a historic transformation in the electricity sector. The government — according to leaked official sources — has prepared a national strategy extending to 2035, aiming to achieve a qualitative leap in the structure of the electricity system and to ensure access for all citizens, in both urban and rural areas. The strategy seeks to increase national coverage, expand production capacity, and diversify energy sources by integrating hydropower, solar, wind, and possibly nuclear energy. It also targets improved efficiency and reduced electrical losses to ensure service sustainability.
Yet, these ambitious plans, as vital as they are, collide with a harsh reality. Field reports reveal that the losses of the electricity sector have gone beyond deterioration to actual collapse. In Khartoum alone, direct losses are estimated at over three billion dollars. Major power stations such as Garri, Bahri, and Jebel Aulia have been almost completely destroyed — up to 100% damage — in addition to the destruction of more than 150,000 kilometers of transmission lines and the looting of 15,000 transformers, each worth around $46,000, alongside the theft of thousands of tons of cables and the loss of all strategic equipment reserves stored in depots, especially in the capital, which suffered systematic looting by the Rapid Support Forces during the war.
The loss was not only in infrastructure but also in production capacity. The destruction and theft of 20,000 barrels of transformer oil led to the loss of more than 1,000 megawatts of electricity — about 35% of Sudan’s total generation — which directly impacted citizens’ lives and paralyzed vital sectors.
In the industrial sector, about 80% of factories in Khartoum stopped operating, particularly those in food industries. Many were stripped down, and their machines looted for copper extraction, increasing unemployment and worsening inflation. In rural areas, irrigation projects dependent on electricity collapsed, especially in the Northern and Nile River States, due to the loss of transformers and power supply for irrigation — threatening agricultural seasons and affecting the trade balance by reducing export capacity.
In the services sector, water stations were disrupted, maintenance costs soared, and citizens’ suffering increased. Hospitals, too, were severely affected — by as much as 90% — due to the loss of critical power lines and frequent blackouts, leaving the health system on the verge of collapse.
The electricity crisis is no longer a mere technical matter; it has become a political issue par excellence — tied to the sovereignty of the state, its national security, and its very right to exist. When such a vital sector collapses due to war and mismanagement, and no integrated or transparent vision is presented for its recovery, the electricity crisis becomes a mirror reflecting state failure, the absence of planning, and the government’s inability to meet even the basic needs of society.
There is an urgent need for immediate measures such as exempting solar-energy equipment from customs duties and facilitating its financing. Yet more importantly, Sudan needs a clear, public, and accountable national strategy based on well-defined priorities — beginning with the rehabilitation of major power plants and transmission lines, rebuilding the strategic stock of equipment, and finally establishing a new legal and policy framework to protect this sector and prevent the recurrence of theft and destruction.
We can no longer deny or underestimate the magnitude of what has happened. The electricity sector in Sudan has suffered a devastating blow that did not merely strike the power stations but hit the very heart of the national economy, crippled the state’s ability to provide essential services, and deepened the hardship of daily life for citizens.
Rebuilding this sector, therefore, is not the responsibility of a ministry or a company but of the entire state. It must be integrated into the core of any national reconstruction project. The challenges are deep and complex — foremost among them financial constraints and declining international support — making the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) system one of the most appropriate solutions for this stage, provided the state is institutionally and negotiation-wise prepared. Continuing to rely on thermal plants requires a consistent fuel supply, posing logistical and political challenges, further compounded by bureaucracy and mismanagement in the absence of transparency and accountability, after years of political interference in this sensitive sector.
Still, the opportunity remains for Sudan to transform from an energy-deficient country into a regional exporter, given the rising regional demand and Sudan’s strong hydrological potential. This, however, depends on the state’s capacity for prudent management and on leveraging its relationships with major powers such as China and Russia, as well as Gulf countries that have previously supported the energy sector.
If the government does not move swiftly to disclose and implement a clear rescue plan for the electricity sector, we may soon find key public institutions bidding for their own electricity supply — and by then, not even hospitals, universities, government offices, airports, or the Republican Palace itself would be spared such a fate.
According to Face of Truth, Sudan’s electricity strategy must not remain locked in the drawers of institutions or confined to technical statements. It should become a comprehensive national project, open to public discussion, with a dedicated media platform to transparently monitor its implementation. For in Sudan’s context, electricity is not merely a service — it is the lifeblood of the state, the foundation of its security, the key to social peace, and the driving force of economic revival.
Stay well and in peace.
Sunday, October 5, 2025
📧 Shglawi55@gmail.com