South Sudan e-Crude Oil Accreditation Permit (ECOAP)

What the ECOAP is and who pays

Radio Tamazuj reported on 4 March 2026 that international buyers must obtain an e-Crude Oil Accreditation Permit (ECOAP) before South Sudanese crude cargoes can leave Port Sudan ¹. It reported that the permit was established by the Ministry of Petroleum under Council of Ministers Resolution No. 20/2023 ¹.

The same report said exports without a certified e-permit have been illegal under a policy effective from 1 March 2022 ¹. It does not explain how that date relates to the 2023 resolution ¹.

Radio Tamazuj reported that invoices must be paid within 48 hours of award letters to comply with ministry directives ¹. It cited a receipt dated 19 September 2023 showing US$166,464 paid for a single shipment ¹.

Reported rate and worked example

Radio Tamazuj reported on 4 March 2026 that the ECOAP imposes a charge of 0.03% on the total value of each shipment, calculated against prevailing Brent prices ¹. Eye Radio reported on 14 May 2026 that foreign buyers of South Sudanese crude were required to pay a 0.3 percent accreditation fee through Crawford's platform ¹⁰.

Radio Tamazuj gave a worked example from ministry documents. It said a 600,000-barrel cargo priced at US$81.30 a barrel generates a fee of US$146,349 ¹. That example does not fit the 0.03% rate in the same report ¹. petroleumlevies.org has not found the text of the resolution or an official fee schedule that settles the rate ^1,10.

Who collects the charge

Radio Tamazuj reported that the primary technical interface for ECOAP payments is CapitalPay, a private digital payment platform operated by Crawford Capital Ltd ¹. Receipts carry the CapitalPay logo and direct users to the Ministry of Petroleum's e-services portal ¹.

Radio Tamazuj reported that it is unclear what share of the fee CapitalPay keeps and what share reaches the government ¹. It reported that the Ministry of Petroleum has not disclosed total ECOAP revenue or the contract terms ¹.

Earlier e-petroleum permit fee on fuel trucks

Eye Radio reported on 30 April 2024 that a Ministry of Trade and Industry order introduced e-petroleum accreditation permit fees on petroleum products bound for South Sudan, effective 22 April 2024 ⁹. It reported that eleven embassies called for the order to be rescinded and said it was blocking humanitarian fuel deliveries ⁹.

Radio Tamazuj reported that Crawford Capital collected fees on fuel trucks entering from Kenya at US$0.03 per litre, and that the levy was suspended in October 2024 ¹. The EastAfrican reported on 22 October 2024 that the South Sudan Revenue Authority had suspended the levy on petroleum products bound for Juba from Kenya ⁸.

UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan findings, 16 September 2025

The UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan published the conference room paper "Plundering a Nation" (A/HRC/60/CRP.5) on 16 September 2025 ^3,4. Its summary findings on Crawford Capital Ltd read as follows ³.

Paragraph 23(e): "A politically-connected company, Crawford Capital Ltd., captures an inordinate share of non-oil revenues through irregular government 'e-services'. Under a 2019 agreement, Crawford retains a 75 per cent profit share of taxes it collects, an arrangement extended in 2024 to an unlawful levy applied to tax-exempt humanitarian agencies, that forced the suspension of critical food aid." ³

Paragraph 24: "The South Sudan Revenue Authority has been complicit in Crawford's schemes." The Commission said the authority is implicated in other diversions of non-oil revenues and described the conduct as a violation of articles 9 and 10 of the UN Convention against Corruption ³.

The Commission recommended in paragraph 31(c) that the government end "corrupt outsourcing of revenues collections" and that revenues be "transparently recorded in national budgets" ³. The summary findings reviewed for this page do not name the ECOAP ³.

US State Department statement, 12 May 2026

On 12 May 2026 the US Department of State issued a press statement by spokesperson Tommy Pigott titled "Announcement of Targeted Visa Restrictions for Individuals Involved in Undermining Peace in South Sudan" ⁵. It said Secretary Rubio is taking steps under Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to impose visa restrictions on members of South Sudan's transitional government ⁵.

The statement says: "Numerous well-respected investigative bodies have documented how corrupt officials and entities, including Crawford Capital, Ltd., have siphoned money from South Sudan's treasury and stolen foreign assistance funds intended to support the South Sudanese people." ⁵

Government actions and statements

On 5 March 2026 Trade and Industry Minister Atong Kuol Manyang Juuk suspended Crawford Capital's licensing operations and ordered a 90-day review of its digital payment and e-service system, citing connectivity issues and staff training gaps, as reported by Radio Tamazuj ². In a letter dated 6 March 2026, Vice President Wani Igga told the minister to "pause your order" and consult the Ministry of Justice ². He wrote that the engagement of Crawford Capital "was not a unilateral decision, but the result of extensive deliberations by the Economic Cluster" and that Council of Ministers Resolution No. 34/2024 "cannot be dissolved, omitted, or reversed by a single ministerial directive" ².

On 13 May 2026 the Ministry of Information, Communication Technology and Postal Services said it "affirms its official engagement with Crawford Capital Ltd." in e-government development, as reported by Lasuba Memo of Eye Radio ⁶. The ministry said the engagement was grounded in established institutional procedures and aligned with resolutions of the Council of Ministers ⁶.

On 14 May 2026 Eye Radio reporter Baria Johnson reported that the South Sudan Revenue Authority said its engagements with the company "were conducted lawfully, transparently, and within government-approved reforms" ⁷. The authority said the digital system had helped raise its monthly revenue collection to more than 130 billion South Sudanese pounds, a figure that is not an ECOAP total ⁷.