Bolivian Congress OKs Co-op with Venezuela

The Bolivian National Congress approved on Friday a crude prospecting/exploitation contract signed between state-run oil firm YPFB amd Venezuelan state-run oil firm PDVSA. The agreement calls for an investment worth $600 million in the risk prospecting of non-traditional areas, mainly in La Paz department, Beni (northern Bolivia) and Cochabamba (central). After the approval of a first stage of the agreement by deputies, the Senate gave the green light to the document, establishing the formation of a binational business named Petroandina, with 60 percent Bolivian stake and 40 percent Venezuelan stake. According to Bolivian Minister for Hydrocarbons and Energy, Carlos Villegas, once approved by Congress, the Executive will have two months to make some changes to the agreement before its coming into force. Petroandina is part of an integration model promoted by ALBA (the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas) and TCP (the People's Trade Agreement), in which the principles of complementariness and unselfish cooperation prevail.