Chad-Cameroon pipeline: Cameroon’s transit revenue surges to 222 billion FCFA in six years
The Chad-Cameroon pipeline has solidified its position as a fundamental revenue stream for Yaoundé. Over the period from 2020 to 2025, the Cameroonian Public Treasury collected a substantial 222.2 billion FCFA in transit fees from Chadian crude oil transported to the Kribi maritime terminal. This significant figure is detailed in the 2027-2029 Medium-Term Economic and Budgetary Programming Document, compiled by the Ministry of Finance. When averaged across the six fiscal years covered, this represents an annual fee of approximately 37 billion FCFA, received in exchange for the passage of crude oil through Cameroonian territory.
Chad, being a landlocked nation without direct access to the sea, relies entirely on this critical infrastructure to export its oil production. The transit fee levied by Cameroon is calculated per barrel transported, based on a tariff that is periodically reviewed and agreed upon by both parties. This mechanism, combined with the actual volumes of oil transported and the US dollar-FCFA exchange rate, ultimately determines the pipeline’s effective contribution to Cameroon’s public finances.
Transit earnings multiply 3.5 times over a decade
A comparison with the pipeline’s initial decade of operation clearly illustrates the dramatic increase in scale. According to data from the Pipeline Steering and Monitoring Committee (CPSP), Cameroon had accumulated 85.5 billion FCFA in transit fees during the eight years following the pipeline’s commissioning on October 3, 2003. At that time, the annual average stood at around 10.7 billion FCFA, a stark contrast to the current 37 billion FCFA. Notably, the recent collections over a shorter two-year window exceed those of the entire first eight years by 136.7 billion FCFA.
However, this impressive leap requires careful analytical consideration. The profitability of the Chad-Cameroon pipeline is simultaneously influenced by the unit tariff applied per barrel, the physical volumes of crude oil transported, and the dollar-FCFA exchange rate. Without a publicly available annual breakdown of the 222.2 billion FCFA, it remains challenging to precisely isolate the contribution of each of these variables to the observed revenue growth.
Repeated increases in the unit tariff
The successive revaluation of the transit tariff has been a primary driver behind this significant increase. Initially set at 0.41 US dollars per barrel when the pipeline commenced operations, this unit price was first revised upward in 2013, and again in 2018, eventually reaching 1.321 US dollars per barrel. The tariff has thus more than tripled over fifteen years, which mechanically boosts Cameroonian revenues regardless of the volumes of oil transported.
A further revision was anticipated to take effect from October 1, 2023, in line with the agreed mechanism between the participating nations. However, no new rate has been publicly announced to date. This silence creates an area of uncertainty regarding the future trajectory of these transit fees, especially given that tariff negotiations are a recurring diplomatic challenge between Yaoundé and N’Djamena, impacting regional African politics and governance Africa.
Historical comparisons require careful consideration
A historical review necessitates distinguishing between different accounting scopes. COTCO, the operator of the Cameroonian section of the pipeline, had reported approximately 200 billion FCFA remitted to the Treasury between 2004 and 2013. However, this amount included income tax and various other duties and taxes paid by the company, not solely the transit fee. Therefore, it cannot be directly compared to the 222.2 billion FCFA for the 2020-2025 period, which exclusively pertains to the transit fee. The precise portion of transit fees within the 200 billion announced by COTCO was never detailed, making the 85.5 billion FCFA from the first eight years the most consistent reference for comparison.
The current fiscal year continues to affirm the robustness of this revenue stream. As of May 2026, Cameroon had already collected 15.1 billion FCFA in transit fees, according to CPSP figures. While this interim level does not predetermine the annual outcome, it underscores the Chad-Cameroon pipeline’s significant budgetary weight in Yaoundé’s income derived from Chadian crude oil exports. The publication of the new tariff, awaited since October 2023, remains one of the decisive factors for anticipating the revenue trajectory in the coming years.
