Author: asouviron

Digital media consultant and journalist. Passionate about history.

YPFB invests $67 MM in the drilling of the Villa Montes X7 well.

Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) will invest $67 million in the Villamontes X7 well drilling project, located in the department of Tarija. The objective is to determine the hydrocarbon potential of the Huamampampa formation, with a view to strengthen Villamontes' participation in the gas business, said YPFB president Wilson Zelaya.

In the Gestora Pública they move $6.2 mn, despite being prohibited.

Despite being prohibited, six officials of the Gestora Pública (Public Management Agency) sold securities with a capital movement of Bs.43 million ($6.2 million). One person has been arrested for the case, two were summoned to the city of Santa Cruz and the rest are at large. Prosecutor Johan Muñoz reported that the investigation began as a result of a complaint from authorities of the Gestora Pública, following an internal audit process that detected the irregularities committed by the officials.

Freight transport on the Paraguay-Paraná waterway to reach 3 million tonnes by 2025

International river trade moved $980 million in 2019. The transport of goods by the Paraguay-Paraná waterway (Tamengo Canal) reached 2.1 million tonnes, which means a value of $979 million, 2.4% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The Ichilo-Mamoré axis transported 1,200 tonnes of cargo worth $1.1 million, according to a report by the Santa Cruz Chamber of Exporters. According to projections, exports and imports via the Paraguay-Paraná waterway could increase by 50 per cent by 2025, reaching a cargo movement of 3 million tonnes.

Cotas achieved savings of $12.99 mn in the current year

Cooperativa de Telecomunicaciones Santa Cruz (Cotas) saved Bs. 90 million ($12.99 million) this year, despite adverse conditions. Cotas explained that the savings are the result of a financial optimisation plan, which included reducing operating costs and renegotiating payments to international providers of essential services.

State Attorney General’s Office asked to probe Eaglecrest’s operations in Bolivia

The State Attorney General's Office has been asked to investigate the gold and manganese mining operations of the transnational company Eaglecrest Exploration Bolivia S.A. (Eebol). (Eebol). The objective is to carry out an audit not only of the last five years of mining operations, but much more, in order to know exactly how much royalties Beni has not received from the extraction of its non-renewable natural resources, said local legislator Paul Bruckner.

Bolivia lost 240,000 hectares of its Amazonian forest in 2020, its highest historical level ever

Bolivia recorded a loss of 240,000 hectares of its Amazon primary forest, according to data from the Monitoring of the Andean Amazon Project (MAAP). This is the highest historical level of forest loss in the country, which ranked second behind Brazil among the countries with the greatest loss of its Amazon forest. Regionally, the countries with the greatest loss of Amazon primary forest are Brazil (65%), Bolivia (10%), Peru (8%) and Colombia (6%). The most intense hotspots in the Bolivian Amazon occurred in southeastern Bolivia, where fires ravaged dry forests (known as the Chiquitano and Chaco ecosystems), according to MAAP.

Population census postponed until 2024, sparking protests in Bolivia’s regions

The National Institute of Statistics (INE) announced that the population and housing census will be carried out in 2024, as its technical and logistical preparation requires at least three and a half years. This postponement generated a wave of rejection at the national level from opposition and pro-government legislators, to the extent that elected authorities in Santa Cruz declared an emergency, and some analysts and politicians said that the postponement is intended to avoid the debate on the fiscal pact or redistribution of economic resources.

Bolivian minister ‘took bag stuffed with $20,000’

Police in Bolivia have arrested the minister for rural development and land, Edwin Characayo, for allegedly accepting a $20,000 bribe. Interior Minister Eduardo del Castillo said Mr Characayo had used his position to "benefit certain people in the acquisition and clearing of land". He alleged that Mr Characayo had promised to transfer ownership of a farm in the Santa Cruz region to a group of individuals in exchange for the money.