# Mauritius and South Sudan curb power use as fuel shock spreads across Africa
South Sudan and Mauritius have both moved to restrict electricity use as African governments respond to a wider fuel and power shock triggered by the war involving Iran, according to the BBC.
In Juba, the main electricity distributor, Jedco, said parts of the capital would face daily power cuts on a rotational basis. The company said it was trying to manage limited energy reserves and prioritise what it described as strategic rationing. The cuts come on top of intermittent outages that have already affected the city since last year because of maintenance work.
The BBC said South Sudan generates 96% of its electricity from oil, making the country highly exposed to any disruption in fuel supplies or pricing. That dependence is especially acute in a country where most crude is exported and refined products must be imported back in for domestic use. An electrical engineer in Juba told the broadcaster that the outages often left some areas without power from late afternoon until the following morning, disrupting business activity and pushing some households and companies toward solar power despite the higher upfront cost.
Mauritius is facing a different but related strain. The island state depends heavily on imported oil for electricity generation, and its government has said a shipment due to arrive over the weekend did not materialise. That left the country with only 21 days of stock, Energy Minister Patrick Assirvaden said, forcing the government to seek replacement supplies from Singapore. Those alternative deliveries are expected to arrive at a higher cost, underscoring how quickly transport and energy prices can rise when global supply routes are under stress.
The broader pattern is visible well beyond these two countries. The BBC reported that governments across Africa are taking emergency or precautionary steps as fuel prices rise and supply chains tighten. Zimbabwe has increased ethanol in petrol and is cutting some fuel import taxes. Ethiopia has ordered fuel distributors to prioritise security institutions, major projects and essential goods. Kenya has reported stock shortages at some stations amid panic buying, while South Africa is warning that immediate supply remains stable even as longer-term availability could be affected.
For South Sudan and Mauritius, the latest measures show how a conflict far from their borders can quickly turn into a local electricity problem. In both places, officials are trying to preserve limited fuel stocks, avoid deeper shortages and keep essential services running while international energy markets remain volatile.
