Smuggling Probe Roils Bolivia’s Gas Company YPFB Amid Paz's Reopening Plans

Bolivian police have conducted raids throughout the week at the offices of state-owned natural gas company YPFB, saying they’re uncovering multimillion-dollar corruption schemes involving subsidized fuel smuggling and irregular contracts.

The investigations offer new President Rodrigo Paz a way to clean house as he prepared to open up the company to foreign investment to reverse declining output and shift fuel imports and distribution to the private sector. YPFB’s recently appointed president, Yussef Akly, estimated the economic losses from diverted subsidized fuel, sold to neighboring countries or the black market, at around $1 billion a year.