4 min readNagpurJul 1, 2026 02:12 AM IST
SBL Energy Ltd, the Indian explosives manufacturer recently sanctioned by the United States over alleged supplies linked to the civil war in Sudan, dispatched its last shipment to the war-torn country on January 27 this year, nearly six months before the sanctions were imposed, an official said on the condition of anonymity. The company was also preparing to begin exporting to the United States but a deadly factory blast in March disrupted the plans, the paper has learnt.
Speaking to The Indian Express on the condition of anonymity, a senior company official said SBL Energy had not exported any material to Sudan after the January shipment.
The official claimed that the company had made around 10-11 shipments to Sudan since it first began exporting to the country in 2022, while clarifying that these referred to the number of shipments made and not individual containers. After the initial consignment in 2022, there was a gap of nearly two years before exports resumed, with the final shipment leaving for Sudan on January 27 this year.
Last week, the US sanctioned SBL Energy Ltd and its CEO Alok Choudhari, alleging the company supplied explosives to the Sudanese Armed Forces through Target Multi Activities Co Ltd (TMAC), thereby intensifying the civil war.
However, the official maintained that SBL was not the principal supplier of TMAC, claiming the Sudanese firm sourced explosives from around eight suppliers, including those based in South Africa and Colombia, all of which have also been sanctioned. The official claimed that both TMAC and SBL were designated simultaneously on June 26, adding that SBL faced “secondary sanctions” as it was among TMAC’s suppliers. The official said TMAC was not a sanctioned entity while SBL was supplying material to it.
The SBL official further asserted the products supplied to TMAC were “100 per cent industrial-grade mining explosives” intended exclusively for civilian mining operations. “The products we supplied have no connection with defence procurement or military supplies and cannot be used in military activities or in a civil war,” the official said.
The official said SBL supplies only to authorised buyers after carrying out statutory due diligence, while maintaining it cannot be held responsible if products subsequently change hands through intermediaries.
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“I am a manufacturer. I supply to an authorised dealer. That dealer may supply another entity, which may further sell it to a third or fourth party. I cannot be held responsible for that chain,” the official said.
The official said SBL Energy exports industrial explosives to around 22 countries across Europe, Africa, Southeast Asia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Ethiopia, maintaining that none of its export destinations were under international sanctions at the time of supply.
The official described Sudan as an attractive market because of its mining sector, while claiming that other manufacturers from India, Russia and China continue to export mining explosives to Sudan.
In a statement released earlier Tuesday, SBL Energy said it is a government-licensed manufacturer of industrial explosives incorporated in 2002, supplying India’s coal, power, steel, cement, mining and infrastructure sectors for over two decades. It said exports are undertaken under a stringent compliance framework and that it has engaged legal counsel to cooperate with OFAC in seeking removal from the sanctions list.
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