Ecuador’s new president faces growing ESG challenges
International lenders distance themselves from Amazonian oil sector under pressure from climate campaigners
Ecuador’s newly elected president, conservative ex-banker Guillermo Lasso, faces significant ESG constraints as he tries to deliver on an election promise to double the debt-laden Andean country’s oil production. Running in his third electoral campaign, Lasso overcame a double-digit disadvantage in the first round to defeat leftist rival Andres Arauz by a 5pc margin. Lasso’s market-friendly stance will be a welcome relief to both foreign investors and bondholders. Like much of Latin America, Ecuador and its oil sector has been ravaged by the pandemic, with the country’s public debt rising to $63bn by end-2020—65pc of GDP. “The Chinese experience has been pretty negative” Gavin, Verisk
Also in this section
28 March 2024
US company aims to accelerate deployment of new technologies offered by Norwegian pureplay CCS firm
26 March 2024
Country has Europe’s largest CO₂ storage potential but regulatory and policy issues must be resolved to enable growth, says Offshore Energies UK
26 March 2024
Largest investment to date will support emission reduction projects across multiple sectors including refining, steel and cement
19 March 2024
Commodity trading companies are set for a key role in shaping green supply chains and providing carbon market liquidity