GASBOL Gas Pipeline

• [português]

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The GASBOL Gas Pipeline, also known as the Bolivia–Brazil pipeline, is an operating natural gas pipeline in Bolivia and Brazil.

Location

The pipeline runs from Río Grande in Bolivia's Santa Cruz department to Canoas in the state of Rio Grande do Sul in southeastern Brazil, passing through the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso do Sul, São Paulo, Paraná, and Santa Catarina.

Compressor stations along the pipeline's route are at Izozog, Chiquitos, Roboré, and Yacuses, Bolivia, and at Corumbá, Miranda, Anastácio, Campo Grande, Ribas do Rio Pardo, Três Lagoas, Mirandópolis, Penápolis, Iacanga, São Carlos, Paulínia, Capão Bonito, Araucária, Biguaçu and Siderópolis, Brazil. At Paulínia, a spur pipeline branches east to the metering station at Guararema.

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Project Details

• Operator: Gas Transboliviano S.A. (GTB) and Transportadora Brasileira Gasoduto Bolivia-Brazil S.A. (TBG)
• Owner: Petrobras (51%), BBPP Holdings Ltda (29%), YPFB Transporte do Brasil Holding Ltda (12%), Corumbá Holding SARL (8%)
• Parent Company: Petrobras (51%), Fluxys Belgium NV (37%), YPFB (12%)
• Capacity: 11 bcm/y (30.08 MMm³/d)
• Length: 3,150 km / 1,960 miles
• Diameter: 16, 18, 20, 24, 32 inches
• Status: Operating
• Start Year: 1999

Background

The Bolivia–Brazil pipeline (GASBOL) pipeline is the longest natural gas pipeline in South America. The 3,150-km (1,960-mi) pipeline connects Bolivia's gas sources with the southeast regions of Brazil.

Technical Description

The pipeline was built in two stages. The first 1,418-km (881-mi) long stretch, with a diameter varying from 610 mm to 810 mm (24 in to 32 in), started operation in June 1999. The 557-km (346-mi) Bolivian section of this initial stage extends from Río Grande (40 km south of Santa Cruz de la Sierra) to Mutún near the Bolivian-Brazilian border. After crossing the border between Puerto Suárez and Corumbá (Mato Grosso do Sul), it continues east past Campinas in the state of São Paulo to Guararema, where it's connected with the Brazilian network. The second 1,165-km (724-mi) long stretch, with a diameter varying from 410 mm to 610 mm (16 in to 24 in), which links Campinas to Canoas, near Porto Alegre in Rio Grande do Sul, was completed in March 2000.

The maximum capacity of the pipeline is 11 billion cubic feet per year of natural gas. The total cost of the pipeline was US$2.15 billion, of which US$1.72 billion was spent on the Brazilian section and US$435 million on the Bolivian section.

Expiration of original contract

TBG's original 20-year contract for the pipeline, signed in 1999, was set to expire on Dec. 31, 2019. The contract allowed for a maximum supply of 30 million cubic meters of natural gas per day, with 80% of that (24 million cubic meters per day) to be supplied on a "take or pay" basis. In February 2017, Petrobras reported that levels of natural gas transported through the pipeline had dropped 45% below peak capacity due to weak demand associated with Brazil's economic crisis. The drop-off in demand, combined with other developments (Brazilian initiatives aimed at increasing energy self-sufficiency, depletion of Bolivia's natural gas reserves) raised questions regarding renewal of the pipeline's contract upon its expiration in 2019. The Brazilian government announced that it would seek alternative buyers for gas transported through the pipeline if Petrobras failed to renew the contract at current levels. A December 2018 tender for a new contract was delayed, and a June 2019 tender was also delayed.

Contract extensions and modifications - 2020 and beyond

In December 2019, the original contract was extended for 70 days, with Bolivia agreeing to continue supplying Brazil's Petrobras with up to 19.25 million cubic meters (MCM) of gas per day through March 10, 2020. In March 2020, the contract was further extended. Under the terms of the new contract extension, Bolivia's national oil and gas company YPFB was to supply Petrobras with 14 to 20 million MCM per day until Petrobras used the full remaining quota of gas contracted in 1999 but never used during the original 20-year contract period. The contract extension will expire no later than 2026. Brazil estimates that it will take four to six years to use up its remaining contracted quota of gas.

With Petrobras reducing its maximum imports through the pipeline from 30 MCM per day to 20 MCM per day, there is now room for other Brazilian companies to import Bolivian gas via the Gasbol pipeline. The Brazilian government confirmed that it would allow YPFB to sell gas to Brazilian end users other than Petrobras starting in 2020; volumes sold to new customers in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state were expected to triple between 2020 and 2022, growing from 1.2 to 3.6 MCM per day.

Operator

The pipeline is operated by Gas Transboliviano S.A. and Transportadora Brasileira Gasoduto Bolivia-Brazil S.A. (TBG). TBG, which oversees operations of the pipeline within Brazil, is jointly owned by Petrobras (51%), Fluxys Belgium NV (37%) and YPFB Transporte do Brasil (12%).

Change in Ownership

In December 2020, Petrobras announced that it would sell its 51% stake in the Gasbol pipeline. In January 2021, EIG Energy Partners sold its existing stake in the pipeline to Fluxys Belgium NV in an effort to circumvent regulatory obstacles to bidding on Petrobras's larger share. In March 2021, Fluxys increased its stake in the pipeline to 33% with the acquisition of assets from Total Gas & Power Brazil. In May 2021, a consortium formed by EIG, Fluxys, and Enbridge reportedly made a non-binding offer for Petrobras's share of the pipeline.

In August 2021, Reuters reported that EIG Global Energy Partners had made a separate, binding offer worth several hundred millions of dollars to acquire Petrobras's majority stake in the pipeline. In March 2022, Petrobras confirmed that EIG Global Energy Partners had placed a binding offer, noting that further negotiations were necessary before any transfer of ownership could take place. The selling price for Petrobras's stake in the pipeline was expected to be between US $500 million and US $1 billion.

Articles and resources

External articles

Existing Pipelines in Latin America

Wikipedia also has an article on GASBOL Gas Pipeline (GASBOL). This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License].