Petroecuador confirmed last Thursday the rupture of an oil transportation pipeline in the vicinity of Yasuní National Park, in the northeast of the country. This incident caused an oil spill that has reached the Napo River, a major tributary of the Amazon.
Details of the oil spill in Ecuador
According to a Petroecuador statement, the “environmental event” occurred in Block 16, within the Amazonian province of Orellana. The unexpected pipe break was immediately attended to by the state-owned company’s personnel. At the site, containment barriers were installed to stop the advance of the oil. hydrocarbon and additional barriers were placed to protect the bodies of water near the Napo River. These actions initially brought the incident under control.
Rainfall and spill containment
Last Tuesday, heavy rains in the area caused part of the crude oil contained in the barriers to be washed into the Napo River. Additional booms are currently being placed to prevent the spread of the oil into the river bodies to minimize the impacts of the spill.
So far, Petroecuador has not provided specific data on the amount of hydrocarbons spilled due to the rupture of the pipeline and the re-mobilization of the material caused by the heavy rains.
It is important to mention that the company has maintained constant contact with the indigenous communities affected by the spill. Members of these communities have collaborated in the first mitigation responses, acting as guides, small boat motorists and providing labor to the state oil company’s contractors.
A Petroecuador emergency response team is also on site to provide the necessary support in the contingency work.
Operation of Block 16 by Petroecuador
Block 16, located in the Yasuní National Park, has been operated by Petroecuador since 2023, after the government decided not to renew the service contracts with Petrolia, a subsidiary of Canada’s New Stratus Energy (NSE), nor to change the contractual modality to participation contracts. Since then, production in Block 16 and adjacent Block 67 has decreased from about 15,000 barrels per day to approximately 10,000 barrels per day.
The extraction and export of crude oil is one of the main sources of foreign exchange for Ecuador, which produces around 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
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Source: DW
Source: shutterstock
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