After 17 years of a partnership deemed unbalanced with CNPC, Niger is changing its strategy. A high-level negotiation committee, created by presidential decree last July, is tasked with renegotiating the terms of oil cooperation. Among the ten strategic committees set up, the oil committee crystallizes all the issues.
In the corridors of power in Niger, a strategic turning point is taking place. On July 29, 2025, the President of the Republic signed decree No. 2025-404/PRN establishing ten negotiation committees in critical sectors. Oil, mining, agriculture, transportation, new technologies… All the levers of the national economy are concerned. But it is the Oil Committee that is attracting all the attention.
Its composition reflects the importance given to this issue. At its head is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation. The committee’s members include the Minister of Justice, the President’s Chief of Staff, the Secretary General of the Government, the Deputy Chief of Staff, and the Secretary General of the Ministry of Oil. A pyramidal structure that places the committee directly under presidential authority.
Before starting their work, all members took an oath. A strong symbolic gesture sealing their commitment to preserve Niger’s interests and negotiate in good faith with partners. The stated objective is not to break, but to rebalance.
Clear missions, colossal stakes
The mandate given to the committee is unambiguous. It must negotiate all current or future contracts in the oil sector, identify the financial losses suffered by the Nigerien state, propose a rebalancing of contracts in line with national interests, and renegotiate on new bases all previous agreements, including those concerning subcontracting and local employment.
One mission is particularly noteworthy. The committee must “make proposals to the President of the Republic to improve partnership relations with the Chinese.” This diplomatic wording reflects a reality known to all in Niamey. Relations with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), almost the exclusive partner since 2008, have become strained.
A partnership under high tension
Niamey has accumulated numerous documented grievances. Of the 90,000 barrels exported daily, Niger only receives 25.4% of the production. CNPC controls the remaining 74.6%. An imbalance that the committee will have to justify or correct.
The Niger-Benin pipeline, inaugurated in March 2024, was supposed to be the artery of economic independence. But the imposed financial conditions have turned the infrastructure into a burden. The construction cost reaches 2.3 billion dollars with an interest rate of 10.45%, in addition to transportation fees ranging from 25 to 50.9 dollars per barrel, while the global average is between 3 and 7 dollars. Between May 2024 and September 2025, the average tariff stood at 27.7 dollars per barrel, an amount that some experts consider exorbitant.
The Nigerien state invested 188,205,930 dollars in this pipeline without becoming a shareholder. A paradox summarizing the ambiguity of the partnership: financing a vital infrastructure without owning a share.
The prefinancing granted in April 2024, 400 million dollars secured on the Nigerien share, was supposed to be repaid quickly. But diplomatic tensions with Benin, which blocked the pipeline between May and July 2024, delayed the deadline. Today, Niger exports to honor its debts, a situation that the committee intends to change.
The “local content,” a violated commitment
Seventeen years after the start of CNPC’s operations, no Nigerien occupies a strategic position in the company. All key positions are held by Chinese or Pakistani expatriates. The promises of skills transfer in the 2008 contract have never been fulfilled.
Even more serious, the data gathered indicates that 90% of subcontracting contracts are awarded to Chinese companies. The remaining 10% would be through front companies, thus bypassing the Nigerien petroleum code, which requires significant “local content.”
Another major point of friction: the non-compliance with UEMOA regulations on repatriation of currencies. According to several sources close to the matter, no funds from exports have been repatriated to Niger. An allegation that CNPC has not publicly denied, and that the committee is tasked with clarifying.
Renegotiate without breaking
The committee is not seeking confrontation. Its approach is pragmatic. Establishing a factual assessment, identifying imbalances, and proposing solutions acceptable to all parties. “Improving partnership relations,” as stipulated in the decree, implies finding common ground.
But the margin of maneuver is narrow. CNPC would have invested 8 billion dollars (subject to the audit of oil costs) in Niger, of which 4.2 billion would have already been recovered according to some estimates. The Chinese company has no interest in renegotiating an agreement that is favorable to it. The committee will therefore have to use persuasion, irrefutable data, and perhaps political leverage.
Niger also relies on diversification. With 35 oil blocks available in addition to the one in production and the nine under exploration, Niamey aims to attract new investors. The goal is ambitious: to increase from the current 110,000 barrels per day to 200,000 in 2026, then 500,000 by 2030. An indirect message to CNPC indicating that Niger can do without a single partner.
A battle for sovereignty
Beyond numbers and contractual clauses, the committee embodies a political ambition: that of a Niger that no longer suffers the terms of the partnership, but negotiates them. The oath taken by its members is not just a ritual. It is the solemn commitment to defend the country’s interests in a sector that represents the economic future of the nation. The first reports of the committee are eagerly awaited, both in Niger and internationally. They will determine whether the country can effectively rebalance an unequal partnership without compromising its vital oil production for its budget.
The last cargo of the 2024-2025 oil year will be loaded at the end of October 2025. After this date, a new era must begin. The negotiation committee has a few months to turn promises into concrete results. For Niger, the time for declarations of intent is over. It is now time for measured actions, tough negotiations, and assumed economic diplomacy.
