Sudan’s civil war took a fresh and dangerous turn this week after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced it had seized control of the Heglig oil field, the country’s largest and most strategic energy asset, dealing a major blow to the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and further crippling the battered economy.
Heglig, located in South Kordofan near the border with South Sudan, is not only Sudan’s most productive oil field but also a critical processing hub for crude pumped from South Sudan. Following the takeover, oil operations were reportedly shut down immediately, with foreign and local staff evacuated and production brought to a standstill.
The RSF described the seizure as a “strategic victory,” claiming it had secured a vital national resource. For the Sudanese army, however, the loss represents one of its most significant setbacks since the war erupted in April 2023, underscoring its shrinking control over key economic and territorial assets.
Before the conflict, oil revenues were among Sudan’s last remaining sources of foreign exchange. Though output had already been reduced by years of instability, sanctions, and infrastructure decay, Heglig remained central to government finances. Its shutdown now threatens to worsen inflation, deepen currency shortages, and further weaken the state’s ability to function.
The impact extends beyond Sudan. Landlocked South Sudan depends almost entirely on pipelines and processing facilities that run through Sudan — including Heglig — to export its oil. Any prolonged disruption risks choking off Juba’s main revenue source, with serious implications for public salaries, services, and regional stability.
Military analysts say the capture of Heglig fits into a broader RSF strategy aimed at dominating resource-rich areas and cutting off the army from funding lifelines. The takeover followed weeks of RSF advances in West and South Kordofan, including the fall of key army positions, and comes after earlier attacks on oil infrastructure that had already exposed the sector’s vulnerability.
Beyond economics, the seizure raises fears of further escalation. Control of oil installations increases the stakes of the war and could provoke intensified fighting around strategic infrastructure, putting nearby civilian populations at renewed risk of displacement and violence.
As Sudan’s conflict grinds on with no political settlement in sight, the fall of Heglig highlights a grim reality: the war is no longer only about power in Khartoum, but about who controls the country’s remaining wealth — and at what cost to an already devastated nation.