PDVSA; YPFB to jointly explore Bolivia's Amazon

This article is extracted from International Oil Letter, Vol 25 issue 22, published 1 June 2009.

The YPFB-Petroandina SAM joint venture between Bolivia's state oil company and PDVSA has secured an environmental license to begin exploration in the Liquimuni Contract, located in the remote Amazon region. YPFB was awarded the 6,750.00 sq km Liquimuni Contract located in the Beni Basin Sub-Andean Zone through an executive order in August 2007. While YPFB and PDVSA want to jointly explore for hydrocarbons in Bolivia, the partners will have to develop an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) as well as consult through public hearings with the indigenous population and rural communities. The Liquimuni Contract is not directly located in a protected area of the Amazon, but wildlife advocates claim the humid woodlands of the region are fragile and oil and gas exploration should be limited or banned all together. Bolivia's sparsely populated Amazon hosts the Pilón Lajas Reserve and the Madidi National Park, and at least three officially recognized Native groups.

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