Bolivia’s Energy Crisis Deepens as Natural Gas Reserves Run Dry
Offers Another 17 Million SPR Barrels as Fuel Crisis Deepens Felicity Bradstock is a writer and journalist based in Mexico City.
She writes for energy websites and covers several other industries, as well as writing… Years of underinvestment in Bolivia’s gas industry have left the South American country facing a severe fuel shortage, as energy prices rise ever higher owing to the ongoing war in Iran.
The energy shortages and economic crisis follow years of poor decision-making by the government.
In 2006, then-president Evo Morales took control of Bolivia’s fossil fuel industry, renegotiating contracts with international oil and gas companies and benefiting from the revenue.
Much of the country’s newfound wealth was invested in public spending programmes, expensive fuel subsidies, and the maintenance of a fixed currency exchange rate pegged to the U.S.
Fossil fuel revenues contributed heavily to Bolivia’s economy for several years, supportingGDP expansionand the development of social programmes that helpedhalve poverty rates.
For many years, Bolivian’s were led to believe that they had more extensive gas supplies than they actually did.
However, in recent years, Bolivia’s fossil fuel sector has suffered as reserves have dwindled and no successful gas discoveries have occurred.
As of April, Bolivia has an estimated 3.7 trillion cubic feet of proven reserves.
The fall in gas production led exports to fall by almost 60 per cent over the last decade.
Bolivia continues torely heavily on natural gas, which accounts for around 70 per cent of its electricity mix.
Meanwhile, little progress has been made in developing the country’s green energy sector, leaving it facing severe energy shortages.
| Product | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Crude | $102.14/bbl | +0.34% |
| WTI Crude | $96.90/bbl | +0.21% |
| EN590 Diesel | $846/MT | +0.18% |
| Jet Fuel A-1 | $1090/MT | +0.55% |
| Mazut M100 | $450/MT | -0.15% |
| Bitumen 60/70 | $470/MT | +0.08% |
| Sulphur Gran 99.5% | $470/MT | -0.44% |
| Urea 46% Gran | $650/MT | +1.12% |
| NPK 16-16-16 | $460/MT | -0.28% |
| Nat Gas TTF | $15.42/MMBtu | +0.92% |
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