Electricity Sector in Bolivia - Investment and Financing

Investment and Financing

In the years following the privatization of 1994, investment grew considerably due to the obligations imposed on the privatized companies. Public investment remained constant, mainly directed to rural electrification, while private investment was mainly devoted to generation.

In the period 1995-2004, total investment in transmission represented only a modest 2% (US$ 14 million) of the total investment in the electricity sector. Generation and distribution received 58% and 40% of total investment respectively. For the year 2004 in particular, total public investment in the electricity sector was around $US 20million which was matched by another $US20 million from private sources. Those two figures add up to less than 0.5% of Bolivia’s GDP in 2004.

Distribution companies acquire investment commitments for each tariff period. For the period 2003-2005, total investment by the main distribution companies was US$ 39.7 million. This was divided as follows:

• CRE: US$ 17.5 million (22% below initially approved amount)
• ELFEC: US$ 10.2 million (5% below initially approved amount)
• Electropaz: US$ 10.4 million (11% below initially approved amount)
• Elfeo: US$ 1.53 million (3% below initially approved amount)