By Francesco Zaratti: Since 2018, Bolivia has marketed the so-called “green gasoline,” a blend of base gasoline with anhydrous ethanol, a byproduct of sugarcane, within the framework of an agreement that obliges YPFB to purchase ethanol from sugar mills and mix it with domestically produced or imported gasoline. The virtues of this program have been…
Tag: energy efficiency
Energy Storage | El almacenamiento de la energía
By Francesco Zaratti: The advantages of renewable energy sources (solar, water, wind, geothermal, biomass) in electricity generation are well-known, and they typically impact global warming much less than fossil fuels. The objections to their wider adoption within the framework of the energy transition are of two types: cost and intermittency. It is improperly claimed that…
The Dilemmas of Tariquía | Los dilemas de Tariquía
By Francesco Zaratti: The energy policy of the last 20 years has emptied both the gas fields and the vaults of the Central Bank. The consequences are: a drain on foreign currency due to fuel imports—partially controlled by the price adjustments under Supreme Decree 5516; the risk of having to import gas in the short…
Energy Transition or Energy Diversification? | ¿Transición o diversificación energética?
By Francesco Zaratti: Given the magnitude of the disaster left behind by the “gasiferous oceanographers,” it is an obligation to support the management of the new authorities in the energy sector. These are colleagues recognized for their honesty and professionalism, and admired for having placed service to the country above their first. They have been…
Fuel Crossroads | Encrucijada Energética
By El Deber: Minister of Hydrocarbons: “The need to import LPG is almost here” Minister of Hydrocarbons and Energy, Mauricio Medinaceli | Ricardo Montero In an interview with EL DEBER, the Minister of Hydrocarbons and Energy, Mauricio Medinaceli, admits that the sector he leads is in critical condition, but shares President Paz’s optimism about reversing…
The expensive banquet of Artificial Intelligence | El costoso banquete de la Inteligencia Artificial
By Francesco Zaratti: There is no free lunch, says an old adage of economists. And in the case of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the menu is not only salty, but astronomically expensive. Every economic enterprise consumes energy, but technological megaprojects devour enormous amounts of it, measured in “Terawatt hours” (1 “Tera” means 10 to the power…
Bolivian Thoughts | Pensamientos Bolivianos (Bilingual/Bilingüe) 