31 August 2009
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva over the weekend signed an agreement with his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales to embark on a bilateral project to construct a freeway between Bolivia's Villa Tunari and San Ignacio de Moxos cities as part of a plan to create a corridor between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
Source: Business News Americas
August 23, 2009
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva over the weekend signed an agreement with his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales to embark on a bilateral project to construct a freeway between Bolivia's Villa Tunari and San Ignacio de Moxos cities as part of a plan to create a corridor between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
The two presidents also discussed gas exports.
For the freeway, Brazil's BNDES development bank will commit US$332mn of the funds needed while Bolivia agreed to contribute US$80mn, according to a report by government newswire Agência Brasil.
The 306km road, to be built by a Brazilian company, will link the Cochabamba valley with the Bolivian Amazon. The governments ultimately envision extending the corridor from Brazil's Santos port on the Atlantic ocean with Chile's Iquique port on the Pacific side.
During his weekend visit to Bolivia, Lula also discussed with Morales the natural gas import agreement Brazil has with its neighbor.
The two governments signed a take or pay agreement in 1999 whereby Brazil agreed to consume at last 24 Mm3/d and pay for that amount even if usage falls below it.
However, during this year's first half Brazil's gas imports from Bolivia fell 27.6% year-on-year to 22.6 Mm3/d.
Therefore Morales said Bolivia is considering revising its prices and shipment amounts for Brazil in order to sell more to other countries.