Thar Jath was chosen as a base by the consortium that developed the Block 5A, South Sudan concession, naming the oil field "Thar Jath" after the town. In 1998 the consortium established a drilling site at Ryer, in Jagei Nuer territory, near the port of Thar Jath on the Nile. In 1998 they built an unpaved road from Bentiu to the north via Duar and Guk to Ryer and Thar Jath
