Chad became a net petroleum exporter after the Chad-Cameroon pipeline came online in 2003. Chad lacks refining infrastructure and relies on neighboring Cameroon and Nigeria for refined product imports. However, delivery problems often leave Chad faced with refined product shortages.

The Doba basin’s three oil fields (Bolobo, Komé, and Miandoun) are estimated to contain reserves of 900 million barrels. According to Oil and Gas Journal (OGJ), Chad as a whole had proven oil reserves of 1.5 billion barrels as of January 2006. Industry experts still consider Chad under-explored, with a high probability of locating new reserves in the future.

A foreign consortium led by ExxonMobil (40% interest) is in charge of developing the Doba basin. Malaysia’s Petronas (35%) and ChevronTexaco (25%) joined the consortium in April 2000, after Shell and Total withdrew from the project. Current development focuses on the Bolobo field, as both the Komé and Miandoun fields are fully operational. In May 2004, the consortium indicated promising developments in its pursuit of additional oil resources in the area. In June 2004, members of the Doba consortium were awarded four new exploration permits in the Chari, Doseo, and Salamat basins, north of Lake Chad.

In 2000, the Chadian government revised its Petroleum Code. The revision allowed for production sharing agreements (PSAs) between foreign companies and the Chadian government. In addition, the government made the investment climate more attractive by reducing the corporate income tax rate from 50 per cent to 45 per cent.

The Tchad Oil Transport Company (TOTCO) and the Cameroon Oil Transport Company (COTCO) have respective ownership of each country’s portion of the pipeline. Pipeline capacity is estimated at 225,000 bbl/d; production exceeded 200,000 bbl/d at times in 2004

In July 2006, the Chadian government created the country’s first national oil company (NOC), which is called the Société des Hydrocarbures du Tchad (SHT). As a result of SHT, Chad has indicated a desire to control 60 percent of the country’s oil sector

Chad has no proven natural gas reserves, and it neither produces natural gas nor consumes natural gas.