"We are interested in becoming a full member of BRICS"
Joining BRICS as a full-fledged member remains a priority for Bolivia. This was stated by Minister of Hydrocarbons and Energy Alejandro Gallardo in an interview with Izvestia. On April 2, Russia and Bolivia signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of spent nuclear fuel management. The Minister noted that our countries have other joint projects in the field of energy, in particular, an agreement on the establishment of a lithium mining joint venture in the Potosi region is awaiting approval from the National Assembly of Bolivia. About bilateral economic cooperation — in an interview with Alejandro Gallardo "Izvestia".
"The Russian Federation has extensive experience in reprocessing spent nuclear fuel"
— On April 2, an agreement on cooperation between Russia and Bolivia in the field of spent nuclear fuel management was signed. Why is this agreement important? What other aspects of cooperation did you manage to discuss with your Russian colleagues?
— Today we signed an important agreement aimed at ensuring that we can conduct operations with spent nuclear fuel on the basis of international law. Russia has experience in handling spent nuclear fuel. This is a very important step for our joint work, which we have been conducting since 2016 on the basis of the agreement that we signed in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Therefore, our bilateral relations are based on common goals and always with the well-being of the Bolivian people in mind.
On April 2, Russia and Bolivia signed a memorandum of cooperation in the field of spent nuclear fuel management.
The essence of the agreement is that irradiated fuel assemblies of a research reactor from Bolivia will be imported to Russia for temporary technological storage with subsequent processing and abandonment of radioactive waste generated during the processing on the territory of our country.
— Do you plan to host the Rosatom delegation in Bolivia this year?
— We have several projects with Russia through the Ministry of Hydrocarbons and Energy, and we are in constant communication, it is important for us to maintain these relations in order to implement all the projects that we have planned together.
— The cooperation agreement between YLB (Yacimientos de Litio Bolivianos, Lithium Deposits of Bolivia) and Rosatom is currently awaiting approval by the Bolivian Parliament. Will this happen during 2025?
— We have signed a very important agreement with the Uranium One Group (part of Rosatom. Last September, in order to jointly mine lithium, they produced up to 14 thousand tons of lithium carbonate per year. This agreement has been submitted to the National Assembly and is currently under consideration. We expect that a special commission will deal with this issue soon.
It is important to note that this agreement will contribute to the development of Bolivia, in particular the region where the salt marsh itself is located, and will have a positive impact on the economic well-being of the Potosi region and, as a result, the whole of Bolivia.
"We must become a country open to foreign investment"
— Since January 1, 2025, Bolivia has become a BRICS partner. Are further joint energy projects being considered between Bolivia and other BRICS countries?
— The policy of our President Luis Arce is that we should become a country open to foreign investment. Based on this, we are open to cooperation with BRICS, and we are concluding agreements with the MERCOSUR countries, which we have recently joined.
President of Bolivia Luis Arce
MERCOSUR is an economic association of Latin American countries, which includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Bolivia as a full—fledged member.
Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Suriname have observer status.
Our idea is that different countries of the world, especially those with which we are affiliated, could invest in various sectors, various industries, in particular those related to lithium and hydrocarbons, so that we could develop together, use joint technologies and know-how. which can be brought by different countries with their own technologies. And thus be even more effective in developing the natural resources that our country has.
— Does Bolivia still have an interest in joining BRICS as a full member?
— Of course, we are interested in becoming a full member of BRICS. We believe that for this it is necessary to go through certain processes within the BRICS. We are doing all this gradually, while using all possible tools that will help improve the situation in our country with the help of the experience that these States have.
It is important to note that the BRICS members are the largest economies in the world, and cooperation with them will allow us to grow as a country and our people to prosper.
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