A fuel tank fire on Monday halted production at Ecuador’s largest oil refinery, sparking the evacuation of nearby residents as a giant plume of smoke billowed from the facility.
Operations at the plant in Esmeraldas province, which can refine 110,000 barrels per day (bpd), were suspended “to safeguard the security of the facilities and personnel,” state oil company Petroecuador said.
It said no one was injured in the blaze, and five people received medical attention for minor effects of smoke inhalation.
Workers were evacuated from the site that was cordoned off by soldiers and refinery staff, an AFP journalist observed.
Ecuadoran police said it was evacuating residents of the area, without specifying how many.
The cause of the fire at the refinery near Ecuador’s border with Colombia was not yet known.
Writing on X, Energy Minister Ines Manzano said the situation was “under control,” but the assurance did little to quell the concerns of residents.
Ramiro Medina, a plant worker, said “a loud noise” was heard, “and we all started running.”
“What is happening now is quite worrying,” added community representative Edgar Romero.
“We smelled something and thought it was coming from the Jaime Hurtado school, which was being fumigated today…. (but then) we smelled gasoline… We hope that the authorities will take action.”
Petroecuador, which operates the facility, did not specify the amount of fuel that was in the tank when the fire broke out.
Ecuador is one of South America’s top oil producers and is heavily reliant on its petroleum exports for revenue.
In 2024, the country produced about 475,000 barrels of crude per day, of which it sold nearly three-quarters, earning $8.6 billion in oil exports.
But production last year was disrupted by recurring power cuts linked to the worst drought in 60 years, which reduced the level of hydroelectric reservoirs to historic lows.
In March this year, a massive fuel pipeline leak saw more than 25,000 barrels of crude spill into three rivers, in an incident that also forced a suspension of oil exports.
Ecuador has two other refineries, with respective capacity for 45,000 and 20,000 barrels per day.
The government said in a statement Monday that “the supply of fuel is completely guaranteed throughout the country” despite the fire.
