Adar oilfield

Adar oilfield
Oil concessions in Sudan & South Sudan as of 2004. Block 3 (Adar) in the east.
Location of Adar oilfield
Country	South Sudan
Region	Upper Nile State
Block	3
Offshore/onshore	Onshore
Coordinates	10°00′29″N 32°57′32″E / 10.008014°N 32.958759°E / 10.008014; 32.958759
Operator	PetroDar
Field history
Discovery	1981
Start of development	1996
Start of production	1997
Production
Producing formations	Yabus Formation

The Adar oilfield, also known as the Adar Yale, Adar Yeil or Adaril field, is an oilfield situated in the Melut in South Sudan estimated to contain about 276 million barrels (43,900,000 m³) of oil.^[1] The Chevron Corporation discovered the Adar Yale field in 1981, shortly before the start of the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983–2005). Soon after Chevron had suspended operations in 1984, Sudanese government troops began attacking civilian settlements in the area, burning the houses and driving the people away, and in the late 1990s, Nuer militias from Nasir helped the army in clearing away the people to make way for the roads and infrastructure of the oilfield.

President Omar al-Bashir inaugurated the site in March 1997, and it initially produced just 5,000 barrels (790 m³) a day. Production from this oilfield, which lies close to the borders with Sudan and Ethiopia, has the potential to bring significant economic benefits to the region.^[2] However, until recently the focus has been on clearing the population away from the oilfield rather than on a longer term strategy for developing the region.^[2] China has provided a large investment in the Adar oilfield and others in South Sudan and Sudan and has made plans to make extensive further investments.^[3]