AES states push resource control as Niger seals $1 billion energy agreements with China

Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine on Monday chaired the signing ceremony of a new oil partnership protocol with the China Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Corporation, describing the deal as a significant advance for the country’s petroleum sector.

The agreements come after months of tensions between Niamey and Chinese oil operators over labour disputes and regulatory compliance.

Niger’s junta, which seized power in 2023, has increasingly sought to renegotiate foreign involvement in key sectors such as oil and uranium as part of a wider sovereignty-focused economic agenda across AES member states.

Speaking during the ceremony broadcast on state television, Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangare said the projects are expected to raise Niger’s crude production from 110,000 barrels per day to 145,000 barrels per day by the end of 2029.

He added that the cost of transporting crude for export through the Niger-Benin pipeline has been reduced from $27 to $15 per barrel, a change projected to save the country more than $106 million annually.

As part of the agreements, Niger also secured a 45% stake in the West African Oil Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation that operates the export pipeline linking Niger to neighbouring Benin.

In 2025, Oil Minister Sahabi Oumarou instructed China National Petroleum Corporation and refinery operator SORAZ to terminate contracts of expatriate employees who had spent more than four years in the country, according to Reuters.

The move followed the expulsion of three senior Chinese oil executives from CNPC, the West African Oil Pipeline Company, and the SORAZ refinery amid disputes over labour practices and wage disparities between foreign and local staff.

The recent deal also include commitments to create roughly 450 jobs for Nigeriens by 2030, expand subcontracting opportunities for local firms, and narrow salary disparities between expatriate and domestic workers.

The agreements signal a renewed phase in China’s engagement with the Sahel region at a time when AES governments are seeking alternative strategic partnerships outside traditional Western alliances while tightening state influence over critical energy infrastructure.