Fuel Supply Chaos | Caos en el Suministro de Combustible

By Erika Ibáñez, La Razón; Eju.tv:

Fuel: CAO says the situation has gone ‘from irresponsibility to negligence’

The president of the CAO said that the entire productive chain is deteriorated and that, as a result of the shortage, a black market has emerged where fuel is being sold for more than Bs 14 per liter.

combustible

Several vehicles are lining up for fuel. Photo: Archive

The president of the Eastern Agricultural Chamber (CAO), Klaus Frerking, stated that the entire productive chain is deteriorating due to the fuel shortage and affirmed that the situation has shifted “from irresponsibility to negligence.”

“The productive chains are already deteriorating—some more than others. We’ve now moved from irresponsibility to outright negligence,” he said in Santa Cruz.

He also emphasized the urgency for the government to fully liberalize fuel imports for the private sector, eliminating all bureaucratic barriers. He pointed out that the diesel shortage, in particular, has led to the emergence of a “black market,” where fuel is being sold for over Bs 14 per liter.

“They say there are 33 companies importing, but ask those companies what obstacles they’ve faced, how much tax they’re paying, what bribes they’ve had to give—or ask whether the black market hasn’t taken over in Santa Cruz. They’re selling fuel for up to Bs 14,” he stressed.

Like the CAO, several other productive sectors, such as transportation, have also voiced concerns over the fuel shortage, which is halting operations and affecting exports, production, and product distribution.

The government has claimed it is distributing fuel at full capacity; however, it has acknowledged that this is not enough to eliminate the long lines at service stations.

The president of state-owned Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), Armin Dorgathen, recently stated that the company depends on funding from the Ministry of Economy to import fuel.

President Luis Arce has attributed the fuel shortage to a lack of U.S. dollars and has repeatedly blamed the Legislative Assembly for failing to approve pending loans.

Leave a comment