The Chad-Cameroon pipeline has solidified its position as a vital and consistent revenue stream for Yaoundé. Over the period spanning 2020 to 2025, the Cameroonian Public Treasury successfully collected 222.2 billion FCFA from transit fees levied on Chadian crude oil transported to the Kribi maritime terminal. This significant figure is prominently featured in the Medium-Term Economic and Budgetary Programming Document covering 2027-2029, compiled by the Ministry of Finance. When averaged across the six fiscal years under review, this translates to an impressive annual royalty of approximately 37 billion FCFA, paid in exchange for the passage of crude oil through Cameroonian territory.
As a landlocked nation without direct access to the sea, Chad is entirely reliant on this critical infrastructure for the export of its oil production. The transit fee collected 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 prevailing dollar-FCFA exchange rate, ultimately determines the pipeline’s effective financial contribution to Cameroon’s public finances.
A revenue stream that has multiplied by 3.5 over a decade
Comparing current earnings with the pipeline’s initial decade of operation vividly illustrates the dramatic shift in scale. Data from the Pipeline Steering and Monitoring Committee (CPSP) indicates that Cameroon accrued 85.5 billion FCFA in transit fees during the first eight years following the facility’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. Remarkably, the recent collections over a shorter two-year window surpass those of the entire first eight years by 136.7 billion FCFA.
However, this substantial increase necessitates 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 disclosed annual breakdown of the 222.2 billion FCFA, it remains challenging to precisely isolate the specific contribution of each of these variables to the observed progression in revenues.
Unit tariff increases on multiple occasions
The successive revaluation of the transit tariff stands out as a primary driver behind the surge in revenues. Initially set at 0.41 dollar per barrel when the pipeline commenced operations, this unit price was first revised upward in 2013 and then again in 2018, eventually reaching 1.321 dollar per barrel. Consequently, the tariff has more than tripled over a fifteen-year span, automatically boosting Cameroonian revenues regardless of the volumes of oil being transported.
A further revision was anticipated to take effect from October 1, 2023, in line with the agreed mechanism between the involved parties. Nevertheless, no new rate has been publicly announced to date. This silence introduces an element of uncertainty regarding the future trajectory of these royalties, particularly as tariff negotiations frequently represent a recurring diplomatic challenge between Yaoundé and N’Djamena.
Historical comparisons require careful handling
A historical interpretation necessitates distinguishing between different accounting scopes. COTCO, the operator of the Cameroonian segment of the pipeline, previously reported approximately 200 billion FCFA remitted to the Treasury between 2004 and 2013. However, this amount included income tax as well as 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 recorded for the 2020-2025 period, which exclusively pertains to the passage royalty. The precise proportion of transit fees within the 200 billion FCFA announced by COTCO has never been detailed, making the 85.5 billion FCFA from the first eight years the most consistent benchmark for comparison.
The current fiscal year further underscores the robustness of this revenue stream. By the end of May 2026, Cameroon had already collected 15.1 billion FCFA in transit fees, according to figures from the CPSP. While this intermediate level does not predetermine the annual outcome, it undeniably confirms the budgetary significance of the Chad-Cameroon pipeline in the revenues Yaoundé derives from Chadian crude oil exports. The official publication of the new tariff, awaited since October 2023, remains one of the decisive parameters for forecasting the pipeline’s financial trajectory in the coming years.
