Sudan's Power Grid Hinges on One Dam After 15 Substations Fall to Drone Strikes

The power grid in Sudan now depends almost entirely on a single source. After a week of drone strikes targeted at electrical infrastructure, the Merowe Dam is the last major plant still operational. It provides more than 70% of the country's electricity, according to an employee at the Sudan Electric Holding Company. All other hydroelectric dams combined produce no more than 100 megawatts.

The crisis deepened on Sunday when drones hit substations in two northern towns. In Al-Dabbah, Northern state, a resident named Abbas Wadaa said he heard a huge explosion shortly after 4 a.m. that shook houses. When residents inspected the site after sunrise, they found the station completely burned. The station's guard, Mohammed al-Nour, was killed in the blast. A large crowd attended his funeral, Wadaa said.

The outage in Al-Dabbah has shut down markets, hospitals, and bakeries. Seif al-Rawasi, a baker in the city, said he has a generator but cannot run it because diesel is scarce. He added that he would eventually have to shut down his business without access to electricity. Farmers in the area face a similar threat as the winter growing season begins. Irrigation depends on electricity, and there is no local diesel to run pumps.

In Abu Hamad, River Nile state, a drone strike the same day destroyed the substation and knocked it out of service. The local security committee reported that the attack caused no casualties. The Sudan Doctors Network warned that these outages endanger hospitals, dialysis centers, and blood banks. The group also noted that the lack of power threatens cold storage for medicines and vaccines.

Emergency Lawyers, a Sudanese rights group tracking the attacks, said fifteen substations have been targeted since early October. The group blamed the Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, for the Sunday strikes. The war has left the grid dependent on a handful of plants, with the Merowe Dam now bearing the bulk of the load.

The wave of attacks began late Wednesday when drones hit the Um Dabakir thermal power station in White Nile state. The station, which has a capacity of 500 megawatts, is the country's largest thermal plant. An employee at the Sudan Electric Holding Company said the attack destroyed four transformers and damaged three generating units. The station's director said in a statement that the station was shut down. White Nile and North Kordofan states have been cut off from the grid, and the damage will be felt for months, according to the regional network director.

Early Friday, a drone carrying four missiles destroyed transformers at Shendi's main substation. The local security committee said the attack also hit a reserve depot and an army air defense hangar, wounding one soldier. Before the war, production stood at 4,400 megawatts. That figure had already fallen to 1,100 megawatts before the latest series of strikes.

Many Sudanese who can afford it have turned to solar panels to cope with the blackout. A solar business owner in Khartoum told The Associated Press earlier this year that a typical household system costs nearly $5,000. That price is far beyond the reach of most families.

Sudan’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that the drones were supplied by the United Arab Emirates and launched from Ethiopia. The UAE has repeatedly denied arming the RSF. The RSF did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The war has killed at least 59,000 people, though aid groups warn the number could be much higher. It has also displaced some 13 million people and pushed parts of the country into famine.