LA PAZ, July 15, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Bolivian President Evo Morales (2nd L) delivers a speech during an event to promote regional development in La Paz city, Bolivia, on July 14, 2016. (Xinhua/Enzo De Luca/ABI)
LA PAZ, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Bolivian and Argentine state-owned oil companies signed an agreement Wednesday for exploring and exploiting hydrocarbons in Charagua in the Bolivian Amazonian department of Santa Cruz.
Guillermo Acha, president of Bolivian firm Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), and Marcos Browne, vice president for gas and energy at Argentina's Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales (YPF), signed the document in the eastern Bolivian city of Santa Cruz.
Acha said these agreements were important for guaranteeing further exploration in the South American country, adding "YPF is coming back to our country as a new partner in exploratory activity."
Charagua is located in a traditional zone with an area of 99,250 hectares, with approximately 2.7 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas in reserve.
The expected commercial discovery, Acha said, will take around 1.177 billion U.S. dollars in investment to explore and exploit.