Petrobras and Bolivia Plan Joint-Venture Gas, Fuel Partnerships

Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Brazil’s state-controlled oil company, and Bolivia plan to create joint- ventures to increase Bolivia’s control of its energy assets while securing Brazilian supplies of natural gas.

Rio de Janeiro-based Petrobras, the Bolivian Hydrocarbon Ministry and Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Boliviano, Bolivia’s state oil company expect to sign an agreement this month, Petrobras said in a statement sent by e-mail last night.

Bolivian President Evo Morales won election last year on a promise to force Petrobras and other foreign companies to cede control of energy assets and pay more for oil and natural gas. Petrobras, which has invested more than $1.5 billion in Bolivia since 1995, runs Bolivia’s refineries. It also produces half of Brazil’s natural gas in Bolivia, a supply that was cut during protests last year.

“The meetings with the Bolivian authorities confirm the chance that the two sides will reach an agreement that will lead to a way to live together in a mutually advantageous, sustainable and binding way,” Petrobras President Jose Sergio Gabrielli said in the statement. The agreement would allow Petrobras to increase investment in Bolivia, he said.

Bloomberg