The Heavy Crude Oil Pipeline, one of the two largest in Ecuador, resumed operations on Wednesday after 16 days of paralysis due to the threat of landslides in the mountainous terrain through which it passes in the Amazon.
In a statement, the private company said that oil transportation was able to be reestablished after the construction of two variants, totaling 2.8 kilometers, in the erosion zone of the Quijos River following the intense rains registered in the country in recent weeks.
He added that the variant was built by a technical team of about 400 people and with the support of more than 20 companies.
Since mid-June, the company declared force majeure to protect itself legally from potential lawsuits and suspended operations due to erosion on the slopes adjacent to the Coca River and its tributaries, where the Trans-Ecuadorean oil pipeline also passes, which remained operational but under close surveillance.
As a result, Ecuador’s oil production fell from 486,219 barrels per day on June 17, when the pipeline suspended operations, to 382,048 barrels last Monday.
The two pipelines are the largest in the country and cover a distance of around 500 kilometers, transporting crude oil from production fields in the Amazon, passing through the heights of the Andean region to reach the shores of the Pacific Ocean.
At the end of 2021, Ecuador suspended oil exports due to landslides that affected the state oil pipeline and the heavy crude oil pipeline, which was also damaged in February 2022 by the fall of a large rock. In February of last year, both pipelines were destroyed by the collapse of a bridge next to which they passed.
The severe winter storm that affected the eastern region and the Andes left 19 people dead, 28 injured and 3,343 affected, according to figures from the Secretariat of Risks. The heavy rains have also caused landslides, rivers overflowing, bridge breaks and other damage to public and private infrastructure in a large part of the country.
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