The public company Petroecuador denounced this Wednesday a sabotage to the Trans Ecuadorian Oil Pipeline System (Sote) in the Santa Cecilia parish, Lago Agrio canton, Sucumbíos province.
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"Today [May 10], in the early hours of the morning, due to a clandestine drilling in the pipeline of the Trans-Ecuadorian Oil Pipeline System [SOTE], in Sucumbíos, an oil spill occurred," Petroecuador said in a statement.
The public company denounced the sabotage "carried out near a body of water against this infrastructure that transports the crude oil of all Ecuadorians."
Petroecuador reported that the emergency was controlled. Specialized personnel of the company mobilized to the point and began containment and cleanup work.
Attention! OFFICIAL RELEASE. EPPETROECUADOR informs about the sabotage to #SOTE that caused the leak of crude oil, intentionally and close to a body of water.
The company said it has temporarily suspended Sote operations, noting that "the measure does not affect exports, as there is enough crude in the storage tanks."
The state oil company added that it will initiate the relevant investigations to determine those responsible for the sabotage.
The Sote can transport 360,000 barrels per day. Oil is one of Ecuador's main export products.