17-09-09 Spain's Repsol-YPF has pledged to invest $ 1.6 bn in its natural gas operations in Bolivia during the 2010-2014 period, the head of the Bolivian state energy company said.
Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos chief Carlos Villegas said the commitment was made by Repsol CEO Antonio Brufau in talks with officials who accompanied Bolivian President Evo Morales on a visit to Spain. Villegas said the investment will go toward drilling seven new wells and to expand the capacity of an existing gas processing plant from 2 mm cmpd to 18 mm.

Repsol acknowledges that it has put little new money into its Bolivian operations in recent years and is now pledging to "accelerate the investments to guarantee the increase in production," YPFB's president said.
He said the accord with Repsol will help ensure the construction of a new pipeline to carry gas to Argentina as well as increasing the amount of output available for export to the neighbouring country. The additional investment by Repsol willalso make it possible to conduct a feasibility study on construction of a plant in the southern province of Tarija to separate liquids from natural gas, Villegas said.

Bolivia has an estimated 48 tcf of natural gas, giving it the second-largest reserves in South America after Venezuela. Morales said that Bolivia needs to progress beyond exporting natural gas to creating value-added products.
"Industrialization will ensure that Bolivia is no longer one of the most underdeveloped countries in the hemisphere and that it can lift itself up by its own hands. It's a wholesome, honourable and noble mission," the president said.