Cameroon’s Ministry of Finance expects hydrocarbon activity to recover from around 2028 after a sharp decline projected for 2027.
Chevron’s Yo Yo field is expected to lead the recovery. The offshore gas-condensate discovery in the Douala Basin forms part of the cross-border YoYo-Yolanda field shared with Equatorial Guinea. The project will supply gas to Equatorial Guinea’s Gas Mega Hub to support LNG production and downstream industries. Although first gas has been announced for 2028, production is more likely to begin in 2029.
Cameroon also expects companies to begin work on the five blocks recently awarded under production-sharing contracts. Octavia Energy Corporation Limited secured the Bolongo block in the Rio del Rey Basin, while Murphy Oil was awarded the Etinde Exploration, Tilapia, Elombo and Ntem blocks in the Douala/Kribi-Campo Basin.
The ministry’s 2027-2029 Medium-Term Economic and Budgetary Programming Document projects a 24.6% decline in hydrocarbon activity in 2027. The drop reflects the first full year following the departure of the floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) production vessel, Hilli Episeyo.
Production continues to decline at Perenco-operated fields, including Sanaga South and Ebome, as well as at Addax Petroleum’s Makoko-Abana accumulation. Glencore’s attributable production from the Bolongo project fell to 161,000 barrels in 2025 from 201,000 barrels in 2024, representing a 20% year-on-year decline.
The departure of Cameroon’s only LNG export facility will bring to an end the partnership between Norwegian shipowner Golar LNG, state-owned National Hydrocarbons Corporation (SNH) and Perenco, the country’s largest oil producer. The Hilli Episeyo increased its annual LNG production capacity from 1.2 million tonnes to 1.4 million tonnes in 2022.
Perenco is redirecting gas from the Sanaga South and Ebome fields to the Bipaga Gas Processing Centre on the mainland. The company plans to process more liquefied petroleum gas (LPG/butane) for Cameroon’s subsidized domestic cooking gas market to reduce the country’s dependence on fuel imports. The Bipaga Gas Processing Centre began operations in 2024 and supplies natural gas through a dedicated 27-kilometre pipeline to Keda Cameroon Ceramics Ltd. The manufacturing plant uses up to 6 million standard cubic feet of gas per day under a 20-year gas sales agreement signed between Perenco and SNH.
The government expects hydrocarbon activity to recover gradually, with growth forecast at 14.9% in 2028 and 18.1% in 2029. New oil and gas production from projects such as Yo Yo and development work by Murphy Oil are expected to support the recovery.
The newly awarded blocks remain in the contract negotiation stage. Cameroon’s projected recovery will depend on how quickly the country can move these exploration blocks into commercial oil and gas production.
source:africaoilgasreport.com
African Energy Council