Cameroon crude production rises 25 percent in Q1 2014

Cameroon's crude oil production rose 25 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2014 to 6.6 million barrels, statistics from state-run National Hydrocarbons Corp (SNH) showed on Tuesday.

SNH did not give reasons for the rise. However, it said in February that it expected 2014 full-year output to rise 25 percent compared with the previous year as new fields come into production.

The corporation said the Central African country also produced 3,203 cubic feet of gas in the same period after starting production in the third quarter of 2013.

The data showed that the company transferred 113 billion CFA francs ($235.94 million) to Cameroon's state treasury in the quarter, down 17 percent compared with the previous period.

Cameroon became a modest oil-producing country in 1977, with output hitting a record of 185,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 1986, but production has steadily declined over the years to around 63,000 bpd in 2011 due to maturing fields.

However, SNH has announced that it expects production to rise to between 99,000-100,000 bpd in 2014 due to improved tapping techniques in matured wells and the discovery and exploitation of new wells.

Oil is Cameroon's main export, accounting for about 45 percent of foreign exchange earnings, and 8 percent of gross domestic product, according to the World Bank. Other exports include cocoa, rubber, aluminium, cotton, wood and coffee. ($1 = 482.4450 CFA francs)