Landlocked South Sudan, which has oil reserves estimated at three billion barrels, is now nearer an agreement with Sudan over the transportation and export of crude oil, after months of delays and disputes.

South Sudan government officials reported on Tuesday that its engineers have now made all the necessary technical preparations to start pumping and transporting oil.

The engineers will visit Sudan – which take a cut of the oil revenue passing through its territiroy via a transit fee – in the next few weeks to make final checks and give the all-clear to start moving oil again.

The statement followed a meeting between the office of South Sudan President Salva Kiir and Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in Juba, the South Sudan capital.

The main pipeline carrying oil from South Sudan through Sudan began to suffer serious issues in March, mainly related to an ongoing regional conflict. South Sudan's daily oil production reached 400,000 barrels before the conflict.

A five-year civil war within South Sudan that ended in 2018 saw the country’s exports fall dramatically, with a conflict with Sudan a few years later also hitting production.

According to GlobalData, Offshore Technology’s parent company, South Sudan’s total gross crude oil and condensate production in 2020 was valued at 151,400 barrels per day (bpd), declining with a compound annual growth rate of more than -5% during the period 2021-2025.

All South Sudan’s resources lay onshore, with the country having the third-largest oil reserves in Sub-Saharan Africa, giving it a high potential for development prospects.

Norther neighbour Sudan, the lowest producer in OPEC+, has an output of around 60,000bpd.