Ivanhoe Energy is a small, Canadian independent oil company embroiled in one of Ecuador’s most controversial drilling projects. The Pungarayacu oil field is located inside a 400 square mile oil concession known as Block 20. The area forms part of a UN Biosphere Reserve, and is the ancestral homeland of the Rucullacta Kichwa indigenous people who are adamantly opposed to the project.
The project presents faces major political, environmental, social, legal, and financial risk to shareholders. Additionally, the company’s checkered past, un-commercialized proprietary technology, and lack of capital all raise red flags about the financial health of the company. This report explores risks faced by investors from the Pungarayacu project, as well as those stemming from the company’s history and questionable fiduciary management.
Daniel Herriges contributed to this report.
Please contact Kevin Koenig, Amazon Watch’s Northern Amazon Program Coordinator, to learn more about Ivanhoe Energy in Ecuador.
