26-08-08 China's Andes Petroleum plans to invest $ 103.9 mm in Ecuador over the next 10 years after reaching a deal on a new contract with the government earlier this month, Oil Minister Galo Chiriboga said.
Andes Petroleum, owned by China's National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and China Petrochemical Corp (CPC), signed a new temporary participation sharing contract that will reduce its tax burden with the state.

The company had earlier this month agreed to switch to a service contract in an agreement that will give the state more control over its resources. The negotiations to hammer out the details of the new service deal will take up to a year, oil officials said.
Chiriboga said the $ 103.9 mm will be invested in Andes's block 14 and 17, mostly for exploration.

Ecuador, an OPEC member, is South America's No. 5 oil producer with a total output of 500,000 bpd.