Protecting the gas business that is the recommendation of this article written by an energy sector expert, who affirms that gas still has a long life ahead in the country…
ISSUE 145 | 2025
Raúl Serrano
In Bolivia’s Bicentennial year, Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) stands as one of the most emblematic institutions in the nation’s republican history. Founded in 1936, after the national trauma of the Chaco War, YPFB emerged as an expression of the country’s aspiration for sovereignty over its natural resources. Today, almost 90 years after its creation, and in a context of global energy transition, the state oil company faces the challenge of reinventing itself or falling behind, following its third nationalization under the government of Evo Morales Ayma.
The birth of YPFB, during the administration of David Toro, was a response to a historic moment of deep national reflection. The conflict with Paraguay had exposed the Bolivian state’s weakness in the face of transnational interests such as Standard Oil. Thus, the nationalization of its assets and the founding of YPFB marked the beginning of a long tradition of state control over hydrocarbons. Since then, YPFB has been a central part of Bolivia’s development model, embodying the aspiration for economic sovereignty.
THE CYCLES OF BOOM: GAS, EXPORTS, AND DEPENDENCE
During the natural gas boom of the 2000s, YPFB experienced its golden era. The nationalization of hydrocarbons in 2006 strengthened its prominence and allowed the Bolivian state to increase its fiscal revenues. Exports to Brazil and Argentina ensured a decade of prosperity, financing social programs, infrastructure, and a growing state presence in the management of hydrocarbon resources.
“…the company that once represented victory over plunder now needs to prove that it can also be a symbol of economic sustenance, efficiency, innovation, and environmental responsibility.”
Gas industrialization became a central pillar of the MAS government’s policy. Facilities such as the liquid separation plant in the Chaco and the urea plant in Bulo Bulo were conceived as steps toward technological sovereignty, signaling that Bolivia had entered the gas industrialization phase. However, management problems, maintenance issues, and limited markets cast doubt on the sustainability of these ventures.
STRUCTURAL CRISIS AND NECESSARY TRANSITION
Currently, YPFB faces a sustained decline in production and reserve certification, a critical dependence on state subsidies, and a business model that seems anchored in the past century, according to several industry experts. Globally, the energy transition and the advance of renewable energies are putting pressure on hydrocarbon companies to transform. In Bolivia, this transformation has been slower and, undoubtedly, not a priority especially given the significant hydrocarbon reserves the country still held until at least 2014, when cracks began to show in the MAS model of company management.
Nevertheless, in line with global trends, some analysts believe that YPFB is destined not only to produce gas or fuels, but also to lead a new vision of energy: diversified, efficient, technological, and environmentally sustainable. This, they say, would involve opening up to public-private partnerships, promoting alternative energies such as biogas, ethanol, and green hydrogen, and fostering distributed generation.
THE YPFB OF THE FUTURE: BETWEEN LEGACY AND REINVENTION
For many industry experts, the future of YPFB lies in a deep reform that, at its core, would mean returning to a purely regulatory role in the sector’s activities. They believe the challenge is to break bureaucratic inertia and embrace transparent management, with technical governance and social participation. They argue that the company must rethink its investment model, incorporate new technologies, and recover its exploratory capacity.
In the 200 years of the Republic, YPFB is not just part of the past; it remains a key player in decisions on how Bolivia will face the great challenges of the 21st century: energy, climate change, industrialization, and social justice, according to many actors linked to the sector.
In conclusion, despite the crisis caused by the decline in gas reserves to meet the demands of regional markets such as Argentina and Brazil, it is emphasized that the future of YPFB is also the future of Bolivia’s energy sector. In times of crisis and transformation, the debate over its direction has not been postponed. For now, the company that once represented victory over plunder needs to prove that it can also be a symbol of economic sustenance, efficiency, innovation, and environmental responsibility.
