Bolivian President Luis Arce Catacora announced Monday the discovery of the largest natural gas deposit in the country since 2005.
Arce tweeted in Spanish that the country had spent “nearly” $50 million to find “a mega [natural gas] field in the north of La Paz, the third best producing field in the entire country.” The president added that the well contained 1.7 trillion cubic feet “of potential reserves.” (RELATED: Federal Court Lifted Biden’s Natural Gas Exports Pause, But The Feds May Not Be ‘Lifting A Finger’ Anytime Soon)
Hace años se gastaron $us500 millones en explorar el norte paceño y no se encontró absolutamente nada. Hoy, con cerca de $us50 millones de inversión, en nuestro Gobierno hemos descubierto un megacampo en el norte paceño, el tercer mejor campo productor de todo el país.
Nos… pic.twitter.com/0y5pFxLHY9
— Luis Alberto Arce Catacora (Lucho Arce) (@LuchoXBolivia) July 15, 2024
La Paz is the capital city of Bolivia. Arce declared the find as “the most important discovery since 2005” in his tweet.
TIWANAKU, BOLIVIA – JUNE 21: President of Bolivia Luis Arce speaks during Winter Solstice celebration on June 21, 2024 in Tiwanaku, Bolivia. The winter solstice marks the beginning of the year in the Aymara calendar, officially known in Bolivia as the Andean Amazon calendar. (Photo by Gaston Brito Miserocchi/Getty Images)
Bolivian President Luis Arce (R) reviews the troops during the delivery of 2 million face masks and a military field hospital donated by China for the fight against the novel coronavirus COVID-19, in El Alto, on February 18, 2021. (Photo by AIZAR RALDES/AFP via Getty Images)
“[W]ith this discovery La Paz enters a totally different dimension, because we will have royalties as a producing department,” he wrote.
The new natural gas field will contribute to the country’s existing gas reserves, which stood at 8.95 trillion cubic feet in 2018, according to Reuters, citing official data.
Bolivia govt announces natural gas “mega field” in biggest discovery since 2005 https://t.co/TRPnyIEC5p pic.twitter.com/KwQaHK7pEA
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 15, 2024
Arce described the implications as “offering the hope of keeping our country as an important gas exporter, promoting a second era of hydrocarbon production and placing La Paz as a department now producing hydrocarbons.”
Bolivian President Luis Arce speaks during a press conference at the Government Palace in La Paz, on August 31, 2023. President Luis Arce acknowledged this Thursday that Bolivia suffered a decrease in its gas production, since the middle of the last decade, because it failed to replenish its reserves, although it promised investments to restore the natural resource. (Photo by AIZAR RALDES/AFP via Getty Images)
LA PAZ, BOLIVIA – JUNE 26: President of Bolivia Luis Arce Catacora (C) speaks on the balcony of Palacio Quemado after a press conference on June 26, 2024 in La Paz, Bolivia. President of Bolivia Luis Arce warned about irregular movements of military troops and raises the alert of a possible Coup d’Ètat. (Photo by Gaston Brito Miserocchi/Getty Images)
The country has been seeking means to alleviate its current economic woes —which include fuel shortages — through foreign investment from resource rich countries like Russia and Brazil, Offshore Technology reported July 5.
