Sudanese authorities have been questioning 36 Russian nationals suspected of smuggling gold in 2023, according to a briefing cited by Bloomberg. The individuals are said to be employees of a gold processing venture that Al-Sulaj Mining acquired in 2021, a company that has faced sanctions in 2020 over alleged links to the Wagner Group founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin. Yet, representatives from Al-Sulaj Mining have stressed to the agency that the firm has no involvement with private military companies. Comments from Sudanese authorities or the Russian embassy were not provided in response to requests for comment.
Bloomberg also notes that Sudan exported roughly 27 tons of gold valued at about $1.6 billion in the first nine months of 2022, while local officials have warned that as much as 80 percent of the mined gold may be smuggled abroad. These figures highlight persistent challenges in tracking precious metal flows in the region and the broader geopolitics surrounding resource extraction in Africa.
Earlier, the Financial Times reported that Prigozhin could have generated around $250 million in revenue from activities tied to his business network involved in Africa and the Middle East. The analysis examined the financial statements of Europolis, M Invest and Mercury up to December 2021. Mercury has been listed on EU sanctions lists since 2021, underscoring the risk profile of entities associated with him. [Financial Times] [EU sanctions list]