• Glencore’s attributable production falls to 122,000 barrels over nine months, down from 176,000 barrels in 2024.

• Cameroon’s government revises national oil output to 19.81 million barrels, down from 20.71 million barrels.

• The state lowers its budget reference price to $66.94 per barrel, from $72.84.

Cameroon relies heavily on oil rents to finance development. The country faces a continuous decline in these revenues as fields mature, and 2025 follows the same trajectory.

Glencore reports that its attributable crude oil production in Cameroon falls to 122,000 barrels in the first nine months of 2025, compared with 176,000 barrels during the same period in 2024. The 31% decline confirms the gradual erosion of the Anglo-Swiss trader’s volumes in the country.

Perenco-operated fields supply these barrels. This operational setup dates back to 2018, when Cameroon’s SNH announced that Glencore sold 50% of its rights in the Bolongo block in the Rio del Rey basin to Perenco, along with operatorship transfer. The transaction aimed to support the development of the Oak field, which authorities touted as capable of adding roughly 10,000 barrels per day in 2018.

Glencore’s weaker performance reflects Cameroon’s nationwide production decline, driven by field maturity, natural well depletion and constrained upstream investments. The deterioration signals geological exhaustion and the absence of major new projects. For Glencore, whose Cameroonian oil assets remain marginal relative to its global metals- and trading-focused portfolio, the impact on group earnings remains limited.

The government reduces its projections for the current fiscal year due to lower volumes. Authorities now expect national crude output to reach 19.81 million barrels, down from 20.71 million barrels. They also revise gas output downwards from 92 billion to 79.2 billion standard cubic feet. The budget reference price for crude is also cut to $66.94 per barrel from the initial assumption of $72.84, reflecting slower markets and persistent volatility.

The combination of aging basins and limited capital expenditure weighs heavily on domestic supply and challenges fiscal planning. In the short term, operators must choose between optimizing brownfields—using enhanced oil recovery, workovers and compression—and targeting wells with high geological probability. In the medium term, the sector must strengthen visibility through a more integrated gas value chain, including secure offtake and better infrastructure links. Policymakers must calibrate fiscal incentives to geological risks and enforce disciplined execution to slow the decline in volumes.

This article was initially published in French by Amina Malloum (Business in Cameroun)

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum