Power Outage Plunges Several Sudanese States into Darkness Following Failure of Merowe Power Grid

A major technical failure in the power network at the Merowe Dam in northern Sudan has caused a widespread electricity blackout across River Nile, Red Sea, and Northern States, as well as large parts of the capital, Khartoum. The outage has raised concerns over disruptions to drinking water supplies and the possible shutdown of hospitals, further compounding the hardships faced by Sudanese residents amid an intense heatwave, with temperatures exceeding 40°C in some areas.

In a press statement issued on Sunday, the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum said the power outage was caused by a fire that damaged electrical cables at the Merowe Dam power station, resulting in extensive damage to the main transmission feeders serving Merowe, Atbara, and Al-Markhiyat.

The ministry stated that technical inspections showed the repairs would require several days before electricity could be fully restored to the affected states.

According to the statement, the Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Al-Mu’tasim Ibrahim, instructed the relevant technical teams to urgently secure the necessary spare parts to repair the damage and restore power as quickly as possible.

He also directed authorities to provide alternative electricity supplies from other generating stations and interconnect available power networks to ensure the remaining electricity is distributed efficiently and fairly.