Sudan’s soaring fuel prices make getting by harder for workers

Azhari Mohamed drives his minibus and eight passengers seven times a day from the Shagar neighbourhood in the Port of Sudan to the city centre and back again.

But despite the long hours – working from 6am to 9pm – fuel shortages in the city have made it difficult for the 60-year-old to make a living.

Azhari’s minibus uses three gallons (11 litres) of petrol a day, costing him about 105,000 Sudanese pounds ($11.30 a day, according to Sudan’s parallel-market exchange rate). With fuel increasingly difficult to obtain, he now spends two days on the road and a third day queuing for fuel.

He can spend more than five hours waiting in line when he needs to fill the tank of his minibus and often finds petrol has run out before his turn comes. When that happens, he goes to the back of the queue at another petrol station hoping to fill up there.

The shortages have led to price rises with a gallon (3.8 litres) of petrol now costing 40,000 Sudanese pounds ($4.30) in Gazira State, south of Khartoum, while in Port Sudan it is 35,000 pounds ($3.80) a gallon.

“We can no longer work because of the fuel shortages. The transport fares are no longer enough to cover the cost of running the vehicle and our household expenses,” Azhari told Al Jazeera.

He says the long hours spent queueing for petrol is time he could spend earning money to support his family.

“I spend long hours of the day waiting to refuel, so I have to work extra hours at night to make up for the time I lose during the day,” he said. “My livelihood depends on what I earn each day.”

After subtracting his vehicle’s operating costs, Azhari has just 50,000 Sudanese pounds ($5.40) left a day, barely enough to cover the needs of his family, which includes his wife and daughter who is at university and needs support for her tuition fees and daily expenses.

“We just need fuel to be available so we can work,” he said. “If fuel is available, we will not face this obstacle.”

Due to the crisis, Sudan’s Transport Chambers Union, which regulates public and private transport services, this month raised intercity bus fares by 40% and minibus fares by 30%.

Aziza Ibrahim from the Umm al-Qura neighbourhood of Port Sudan, works as a cleaner to support her four children. Just getting to work by bus has become a huge financial burden for the 38-year-old, who has cut back her work days to three times a week due to the high travel costs.

Before the war, a journey from her home to the main transport station in the city centre cost 700 Sudanese pounds ($0.08) per passenger. Fares have since risen to 2,500 pounds ($0.27) on some routes, while others charge 2,000 pounds ($0.22).

“I go to work three days a week to reduce transport costs. I need 11,000 pounds ($1.18) a day for the round trip between my home and workplace,” she told Al Jazeera.

Transport costs now consume nearly half of Aziza’s monthly salary of 400,000 pounds ($43), while costly treatment for her diabetes is another financial burden.

“Sometimes I have to borrow money just to be able to go to work. I repay it at the beginning of the month when I receive my salary, which is barely enough to cover my family’s needs,” she told Al Jazeera.

According to the United Nations Development Programme, the war has pushed average incomes in Sudan back to levels last seen in the 1990s. 

That is partly due to the effects of the civil war on Sudan’s oil sector. Fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) began on April 15, 2023.

Last year, the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum estimated war-related losses at $20 billion. The World Bank has reported that attacks on the Balila oil field disrupted supplies to the Khartoum refinery, which previously met about 60% of the country’s demand for petrol and liquefied petroleum gas.

War damage has seen a sharp decrease in oil production, leaving Sudan reliant on imports amid the global fuel crisis that has pushed up prices of gas, petrol and diesel, among other commodities.

Economic analyst Sidi Ohaj said that the government requirements for petroleum importers have also contributed to the shortages. They include a stipulation that importers must deposit 200kg of gold in the Central Bank and own fuel storage facilities in order to operate in Sudan. Some importers have been unable to meet those requirements, forcing them out of the market which reduces supply.

“One of the causes of the current crisis is the government’s decision to regulate the operations of petroleum import companies,” Sidi told Al Jazeera. “Some companies did not meet the requirements, which led to their exit from the market. This reduced supply relative to demand.”  

The government needs to urgently ease import procedures to increase domestic supplies, he said, with shortages affecting the wider economy.

But as the war between the United States and Iran continues to disrupt global energy markets, there is little hope the situation will improve any time soon.

“The continuation of the war [in Sudan], particularly drone attacks that threaten infrastructure across Sudan, is one of the main challenges facing the oil sector,” Sidi told Al Jazeera.

Prices have also risen due to the energy crisis, impacting the purchasing power of citizens and profits of businesses.

Ahmed al-Haj is a local trader in Omdurman market who sells skincare products, such as petroleum jelly, which he packages himself . He said high energy prices are costing almost all areas of his business.

“The raw materials for the products I sell are imported. Higher diesel and petrol prices have increased the cost of transporting a tonne of goods by 30 to 50 percent,” Ahmed told Al Jazeera.

“That increase is then reflected in the price of the products.”

When electricity cuts force him to use a fuel-powered generator for heating or packaging, the additional fuel costs add to his daily bills.

Deliveries within Omdurman, which previously cost 5,000 Sudanese pounds ($0.70) now cost between 10,000 and 12,000 pounds ($1.07 and $1.29). Reaching customers in other states has become impossible due to the high transport costs.

“Transport and distribution workers have also reduced the number of trips they make, leading to goods piling up at traders’ premises,” he added.