Relationship dossier
Bolivia
Brazil
Relationship assessment
Energy integration anchors Bolivia–Brazil ties, alongside recurring friction over hydrocarbon policy.
Bolivia toward Brazil
+25Bolivia has supplied natural gas to Brazil through the Bolivia–Brazil pipeline and long-term trade arrangements. In 2006, Bolivia nationalized hydrocarbon assets held by Brazil’s Petrobras, prompting negotiations over compensation and the future of Brazilian operations.
Brazil toward Bolivia
+25Brazil has invested in Bolivia’s energy sector and purchased Bolivian natural gas through the Bolivia–Brazil pipeline and associated trade arrangements. Following Bolivia’s 2006 nationalization of Petrobras assets, Brazil pursued negotiations rather than ending the energy relationship.
Overall relationship
+25The bilateral relationship is anchored by cross-border gas infrastructure, long-term energy trade and Brazilian investment in Bolivia. That durable interdependence has coexisted with disputes over Bolivia’s control of hydrocarbons and Petrobras’s assets, producing a cooperative but periodically strained relationship.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Bolivia and Brazil have built substantial energy ties, notably through the Bolivia–Brazil gas pipeline and long-term natural-gas trade. These links have supported cooperation but also created disputes, especially when Bolivia nationalized hydrocarbon assets held by Petrobras in 2006. Their relationship combines durable economic interdependence with periodic political and energy-related friction.
Areas of tension
- Bolivia’s 2006 nationalization of hydrocarbon assets held by Petrobras and negotiations over compensation and operations.
Key developments
The Bolivia–Brazil gas pipeline began operating, enabling sustained cross-border natural-gas trade.
Bolivia nationalized hydrocarbon assets held by Petrobras; the governments subsequently negotiated over compensation and Brazilian operations.
Major uncertainties
- The current scope and implementation of bilateral energy arrangements are unclear.
- The extent of recent government cooperation beyond energy ties is unclear.