SUDAN · CRITICAL MINERALS
Key Facts
- —The country Sudan, a large Red Sea country in northeast Africa, has been at war since April 2023 between rival armed forces.
- —What happened On Tuesday 6 October, the state-owned Sudanese Mineral Resources Company said Sudan gold exports earned US$2.292 billion from January to September 2026.
- —The targets Gold output reached 105% of the company’s planned target and revenue 131%, which it called the best results since the company was founded.
- —Compared with 2025 Sudan’s central bank recorded official gold exports of 14.7 tonnes, worth US$1.536 billion, for the whole of 2025.
- —The US angle The US Treasury has sanctioned both war leaders and an Emirati gold buyer it says likely bought gold for the paramilitaries.
- —Still open The company gave no tonnage, no list of buyers and no breakdown by region, so nine-month volumes remain unknown.
Sudan gold exports through official channels earned US$2.292 billion from January to September 2026, the state mining company said on Tuesday 6 October. That is already more than the US$1.536 billion the central bank recorded for all of 2025.
For Americans, Sudan gold exports are a sanctions story, because the US Treasury says gold has financed one side of the war. The figures, reported in Arabic by the Sudanese news site Sudan Tribune, show how much gold the army-aligned government now moves through official channels.
What the State Mining Company Reported
The Sudanese Mineral Resources Company is the government body that supervises and regulates mining in Sudan, under the Ministry of Minerals. It licenses investors, oversees small-scale and industrial mines, and enforces safety and environmental rules.
Its executive office met on Tuesday at the company’s headquarters in Khartoum to review results up to the end of September. A press release obtained by Sudan Tribune said the company set records in production, revenue and export earnings.
Gold production reached 105% of the target the company had planned for 2026, and revenue collection reached 131% of its goal. Sudan gold exports earned US$2.292 billion over the nine months.
Director general Mohamed Taher Omer thanked staff and mining partners and told them to redouble their efforts and clear obstacles facing the sector. He also stressed environmental protection, mine safety and the company’s shift to digital systems.
The nine-month result builds on a strong first half. In July, the company said it had hit 111% of its production and revenue targets for January to June, Sudan Tribune reported.
Who Is Fighting Sudan’s War
The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are the national army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. The government that runs the Ministry of Minerals and the state mining company is aligned with the army.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are a paramilitary group led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti. In January 2025, the US government determined that the RSF had committed genocide in Sudan’s western Darfur region.
The two forces have fought each other since April 2023, in a civil war the US Treasury links to a worsening humanitarian crisis. A fuller guide to the conflict is in our explainer on who is fighting in Sudan.
The Gap Between Gold Mined and Gold Declared
Official figures cover only part of Sudan’s gold. The state mining company put national production at about 70 tonnes in 2025, while the central bank recorded official exports of only about 14 tonnes.
A central bank statistical brief put the 2025 total at 14.7 tonnes, worth US$1.536 billion, according to Sudan Tribune.
Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim has said official exports did not exceed 20 tonnes in 2025. He also leads the Justice and Equality Movement, a Darfur armed group fighting the RSF, and the US Treasury sanctioned him in September 2025.
Technical estimates cited by Sudan Tribune suggest that between 48% and 60% of Sudan’s gold is smuggled through informal channels. Sudan gold exports go mainly to the United Arab Emirates, and also to Oman, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt and several African countries.
The government says more gold now moves through official channels. In August, Minerals Minister Nour al-Daem Taha said first-half official exports already equalled the official total for all of 2025.
What It Means for US Readers
Washington has long linked Sudanese gold to the war. In June 2023, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which runs US sanctions, blacklisted Al Junaid, an RSF-linked holding company with gold mining interests.
The RSF seized the Jebel Amer gold mine in 2017, the Treasury said. Since then, gold mining and export have become a vital source of revenue for the RSF and Hemedti’s Dagalo family.
On 7 January 2025, the Treasury sanctioned Hemedti himself and companies linked to the RSF, several of them in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). One target, the UAE-based Al Zumoroud and Al Yaqoot Gold & Jewellers, bought Sudanese gold, presumably for the RSF, and moved it to Dubai.
Nine days later, the Treasury also sanctioned General al-Burhan, the army chief. Assets of sanctioned people and firms in the United States are blocked, and Americans are generally barred from dealing with them.
For US refiners, jewellers, banks and investors exposed to the Gulf gold trade, higher Sudan gold exports through official channels do not remove that risk. In June 2026, the Treasury sanctioned new networks and urged both sides to accept a three-month humanitarian truce.
What Is Not Known
The statement did not give the tonnage of Sudan gold exports, the buyers or the share sold to the United Arab Emirates. It also did not say whether the targets were set for the full year or only for the nine months.
The company did not say how much of the gain came from higher volumes and how much from world gold prices. Its revenue figure was given only in Sudanese pounds, without a dollar value.
The statement does not mention gold mined in areas held by the RSF, and the figures come from the company’s own count. A rise in official exports does not mean that smuggling or the war economy has ended.
More: Sudan news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much gold did Sudan export in 2026 so far?
Sudan gold exports through official channels earned US$2.292 billion from January to September 2026, according to the state Sudanese Mineral Resources Company. The company did not say how many tonnes that represents.
Who runs Sudan’s gold sector?
The Sudanese Mineral Resources Company regulates mining under the Ministry of Minerals of the army-aligned government. Its director general is Mohamed Taher Omer.
Why is so much Sudanese gold smuggled?
Most of Sudan’s gold comes from small-scale traditional miners, and much of it leaves the country through informal channels. Estimates cited by Sudan Tribune put smuggling at 48% to 60% of production.
Has the United States sanctioned Sudanese gold companies?
Yes. The US Treasury sanctioned RSF-linked Al Junaid in June 2023 and the UAE-based gold buyer Al Zumoroud and Al Yaqoot Gold & Jewellers in January 2025. It has also sanctioned both war leaders.
Where does Sudan’s official gold go?
Sudan Tribune reports that Sudan gold exports go mainly to the United Arab Emirates. Oman, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt and several African countries also buy Sudanese gold.
Sources: Sudan Tribune (Arabic), 6 October 2026; Sudan Tribune, 16 July 2026; Sudan Tribune, 12 April 2026; US Treasury, 1 June 2023; US Treasury, 7 January 2025; US Treasury, 16 January 2025; US Treasury, 12 September 2025; US Treasury, 26 June 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error