The state-run oil companies of Bolivia and Argentina, Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) and YPF, signed a contract on Jan. 16 to jointly explore and drill an area in the Charagua area of Bolivia's Santa Cruz province.

If the project is deemed commercially viable, the companies will invest around $1.177 billion and form a joint venture in which the Bolivian company will have a 51% stake, Guillermo Acha, the CEO of YPFB, said in a statement.

Charagua could hold 2.7 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas and the expected maximum daily output could be 10.2 MMcm.

The contract is valid for 40 years and needs to be approved by Bolivia's Congress, Acha said.