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QUITO, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Ecuador plans to launch a tender on Sept. 21 to chose a company willing to renovate state-run oil company Petroecuador's 110,000 barrel-per-day Esmeraldas refinery, the energy ministry said in an online presentation on Friday.
Energy Minister Rene Ortiz said the ministry is looking for a company to invest around $2.4 billion to boost fuel output at the refinery to help the South American country reduce imports of refined products.
The chosen company would provide the funds for the renovation and then recover its investment by delivering the fuels produced to Petroecuador for sale domestically, Ortiz said, without providing further details. Such a model is typically known as a tolling arrangement.
"The state will not be making the investments. It will deliver the crude oil and receive the refined products in exchange for a fee," Ortiz said.
The new arrangement is expected to last around 25 years, Ortiz said.
(Reporting by Alexandra Valencia in Quito Writing by Luc Cohen; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)
((luc.cohen@thomsonreuters.com; +58 424 133 7696; Reuters Messaging: Twitter: @cohenluc))
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