KHARTOUM, Sept 25 - Reuters - Protesters in eastern Sudan shut a pipeline that is imported crude oil to Khartoum capital but there are enough reserves for the country's needs for up to ten days, ministry of energy and oil said on Saturday.
Khartoum oil refinery, which produces fuel for domestic consumption, is still operating normally, ministry added in a statement.
Another pipeline used for exporting crude oil from neighbouring South Sudan is still working but it's vulnerable to freezing and damage because protesters are blocking a vessel from loading the oil, it said.
Oil depots at Bashayer oil terminal port in eastern Sudan will be filled after 10 days at the most if the blockage of exports continued, the Ministry said. That would in turn cause South Sudanese oil fields to stop production.
Protesters from the Beja tribes in eastern Sudan are blocking ports and shutting roads in protest at what they describe as poor political and economic conditions in the region.
The ministry appealed to the protesters to end the shutdown within a week to spare the country huge financial and technical losses.