The office of Venezuela’s state-run oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) in Bolivia was reopened on Tuesday during a visit paid by Minister of People’s Power for Foreign Affairs, Jorge Arreaza, to PDVSA’s facilities located in La Paz which were raided and sealed off early this year by Bolivia’s National Police after the coup d’état against President Evo Morales.
“They were closed for ten months under false accusations, the same accusations made against the Bolivarian Government. They fear the people. We restored legality, rebuilt history and did what we had to do. With great pride, we recovered the Embassy of Venezuela for the people, and we restored the legal status of our company,” said the Venezuelan foreign minister.
In the PDVSA headquarters in Bolivia, Arreaza said that by resuming the diplomatic relations between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Plurinational State of Bolivia, they will enter a new phase of cooperation in different areas.
The Venezuelan foreign minister also announced they will resume projects such as Fluvialba, a joint venture aimed at transporting food and hydrocarbons via the Paraguay-Paraná waterway, stretching along Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil and Bolivia, as well as the Binational Joint Commission.
Arreaza asserted that the international front is fundamental to strengthen the Latin American integration, to boost ALBA and reactivate UNASUR and CELAC. He recognized the effort and dedication of PDVSA’s workers.
“Today, PDVSA Bolivia resumes operations for the benefit of the people of Our America,” he said.
PDVSA opened its office in Bolivia in 2006 as part of the cooperation with Bolivia’s state-run oil company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB).