Malabo, Equatorial Guinea — Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea have signed a unitization agreement to share output from the 2. 5-trillion-cubic-foot Yoyo-Yolanda gas field that straddles their maritime boundary, according to statements released after Tuesday’s ceremony at the People’s Palace in Malabo. Under the accord, the neighbouring states will treat the offshore reservoir as a single technical and legal unit, with Chevron expected to lead upstream work and gas routed to liquefaction plants on both sides of the border.
Government communiqués said production will feed Equatorial Guinea’s existing Punta Europa LNG complex and a planned onshore plant at Bipaga in Cameroon.
The deal follows a bilateral framework treaty signed in March 2023. Equatorial Guinea’s vice-president, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, hosted the Cameroonian delegation led by acting mines minister Fuh Calistus Gentry, who arrived in Malabo on 1 February to finalise fiscal and operational terms.
Sources close to the talks value the phased investment at roughly four billion U.
S. Dollars.
Regional officials say unitization aligns with IMF guidance for shared hydrocarbon deposits and is intended to prevent overlapping claims while splitting tax and royalty income according to pre — set formulas.
The same approach could be used for other cross — border discoveries in the Gulf of Guinea, where seismic surveys continue. Environmental groups have yet to react publicly, but official statements note that both governments will require operators to submit impact assessments before drilling begins.
It remains unclear when first LNG cargoes are expected; further project details are anticipated once front-end engineering contracts are awarded.
*Additional reporting by ImNews | Sources consulted: 5*
