Andean Group - September 2016 (ISSN 1741-4466)

Boosting renewable energy: On 15 September, the Morales government awarded a US$1bn contract to the Chinese company Asociación Accidental Rositas (AAR) for the design, construction and operation of the Rositas dam, the first hydroelectric project in Santa Cruz department.

At a ceremony also attended by Energy Minister Sánchez and Vice President Álvaro García Linera, President Morales said that the dam, which has been in the pipeline for 40 years, would produce 400MW of energy when it was up and running. He also told reporters that the dam was one of eight to be installed in the basin of the Rio Grande, which crosses the departments of Santa Cruz, Cochabamba and Chuquisaca.

Three days earlier, Morales inaugurated the testing process of the "Múltiple Misicuni" dam in Cochabamba department, which is expected to be completed in April 2017 and will generate 120 megawatts (MW). This will be Bolivia’s largest dam and will provide the country with 10% of its energy demand, which currently stands at 1200 MW.

Also on 12 September, Bolivia’s hydrocarbons & energy ministry, national electricity company (Empresa Nacional de Electricidad, ENDE), and Central Bank (BCB) inked a deal for the hydroelectric project Ivirizu, also located in Cochabamba department. Energy Minister Sánchez told reporters that the project represented US$550m in investment and was expected to generate around 300MW.

The MAS government has trumpeted these new initiatives as part of efforts to transform the country’s energy matrix. The national energy development plan (2008-2027) seeks to do this by ending dependence on diesel, gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and replacing this with alternatives.

This plan states that by 2027, 55% of Bolivia’s energy will come from natural gas up from 18% in 2010. Meanwhile diesel will be reduced to 11% by 2027 from 27% in 2010; gasoline from 14% to 12%, LPG from 10% to 4% and biomass from 17% to 11%. Electricity will also be reduced from 11% to 8%, with a greater proportion of it to be generated by hydro rather than thermal sources.

Net international reserves: On 20 September, Bolivia’s central bank (BCB) issued a report showing that the country’s net international reserves (RIN) in the first six months of 2016 reached US$11.6bn. This is 11% less than that registered on 31 December 2015, the figure for the first half of 2016 nonetheless still represents 33% of GDP – one of the highest percentages in the region.

• Nuclear Research and Technology Centre

A press release by Bolivia’s hydrocarbons & energy ministry notes that the first contract inked by the Bolivian nuclear energy agency (ABEN) and Atom Stroy Export S.A , a dependency of the Russian state-owned atomic energy corporation Rosatom, regarding the construction of a Nuclear Research and Technology Centre, was to carry out a diagnostic and evaluation of nuclear infrastructure in Bolivia. The second contract, signed by Aben and Rosatom Service S.A., a dependency of Rosatom, was to carry out engineering prospecting for the evaluation and justification of the site; an environmental impact test; and other studies related to the obtainment of necessary licences ahead of the start of construction of the centre.