Diesel is in short supply again in the country, with YPFB blaming the weather for the reduced fuel supply

State-owned Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) admitted that the country’s diesel supply was irregular due to climatic and logistical factors, resulting in internal supply of up to 78%. The company said it hoped to correct the problem as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the transport department threatened to take pressure measures if the supply across the country was not normal within 24 hours. The National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) announces a plan to control supply To ensure diesel supply and avoid pipelines at the pump.

Just last week, long lines began to appear in different parts of the country, such as La Paz, Cochabamba, Santa Cruz, Potosí, Sucre, Tarija, Oruro, Beni and Pando.

This is not the first time that fuel supply problems have occurred; last year and in the first few months of 2024, there were multiple queues at different gas stations in the country. A former minister attributed the problem to a shortage of dollars.

Last week in Potosí, EL DEBER was able to confirm that several vehicles, including trucks and convoys, were lining up in some municipalities in the Potosí department in search of diesel. This was seen in Uyuni on Wednesday and in the capital, Potosí, on Sunday.

Armin Dorghaten, president of state-owned YPFB, explained that diesel shipments fell 22% due to logistical problems caused by climate factors, including the shallow water depth of the Paraná-Paraguay waterway and storm surges at the port of Arica.

“The waterway, which is crucial for fuel transportation, has only one meter of draft, while two meters are required for normal operation. In addition, three vessels (one crude and two diesel) are waiting at the port of Arica due to adverse weather conditions that have hampered unloading,” he said.

The executive said he hoped the situation would normalize once weather conditions improved, allowing vessels to unload in Arica. Meanwhile, diesel traffic is increasing on other routes, such as Paraguay and Peru.

“It’s not that there’s no fuel, they’re going to find the fuel. But there will be a delay in delivery, it depends on whether we can increase the traffic Other revenues, especially from the South, Argentina and Paraguay,” he said.

YPFB Marketing Manager Joel Callaú explained that YPFB is working to ease the problem of importing additional fuel through other border crossings in the country.

“We are looking at all of these aspects, but we have to be clear that these climate impacts we have are the reason why we have so many barges. Ability to unload fuel at the port of Arica and on the waterwayKalou commented.

Héctor Mercado, president of the Bolivian Chamber of Heavy Transport, described different excuses and said the fuel shortage was causing losses for transporters.

Furthermore, he criticised the excuses given by the authorities, such as weather conditions or drought, ensuring that these were not the real causes of the problem.

“We are loading at normal port We also load cargo onto the ship,” he noted.

Mercado said the situation had become unsustainable, with long queues at gas stations and transporters suffering heavy losses. “There is no diesel,” he said.

Former Hydrocarbons Minister Álvaro Rios believes that one of the main factors in the irregular fuel supply is the lack of dollars to import the amount needed for domestic supply.

According to the former minister, four years ago, Bolivia had an uninterrupted supply of gasoline, LPG and diesel. However, last year supply problems became more frequent and persistent.

“Four or five years ago, we had no supply problems. Now, with the lack of dollars, the situation has changed dramatically,” he said.

He added that the shortages were made worse by panic among consumers, who feared a prolonged shortage and stockpiled fuel.

“This has not happened before. People are not queuing for fear of running out of fuel,” he added.