By El Diario: Analyst Álvaro Ríos in an interview with EL DIARIO The oil crisis reopens the subsidy issue, strains dollar reserves, and exposes structural flaws in YPFB and Bolivia’s fuel logistics. Analyst and former Minister of Hydrocarbons Álvaro Ríos, in an interview with EL DIARIO, warned that Bolivia must react “immediately” to the rise…
Tag: energy efficiency
Bolivia’s Renewed Energy Relationship with Brazil | Renovada relación energética de Bolivia con Brasil
By Francesco Zaratti: La Paz, 03/18/26 – The recent visit of Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz to his counterpart Lula da Silva in Brasilia sought to realign economic relations between the two nations, which have been dominated for decades by the hydrocarbons sector. In a pragmatic turn, the need for economic integration seems to have sidelined—at least…
Fuel Shock for Bolivia | Choque Energético para Bolivia
By Francesco Zaratti: The Perfect Storm for YPFB: Between Internal Sabotage and Global Chaos During the recent gasoline crisis, sector authorities have repeatedly denounced internal sabotage within YPFB. However, since no perpetrators have been identified, we are most likely facing “culpable omissions” in procurement logistics, quality certification, and storage. The result is a profound erosion…
Gasoline More Bitter than Sweet | Gasolina más amarga que dulce
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…
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…
Bolivian Thoughts | Pensamientos Bolivianos (Bilingual/Bilingüe) 