Not happy: President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva
Brazil cans Ecuador visit after expulsions
Brazil has called off a ministerial trip to Ecuador to discuss joint infrastructure projects amid growing tensions between President Rafael Correa's administration and Brazilian companies Odebrecht and Petrobras.
The Brazilian mission was due to meet Ecuadorian authorities on 15 October, but Ecuadorean decision to expel Brazilian contractor Odebrecht from the country irritated President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brazilian press reports claimed.
“Due to the latest developments involving Brazilian companies in (Ecuador), Brazil decided to postpone indefinitely the mission trip,” the foreign affairs ministry said in a statement.
Earlier this week, President Lula said that Petrobras may leave Ecuador if it does not reach an agreement with officials over its exploration and production projects in the country.
Last month, Petrobras decided to transfer its interests in Ecuador's Block 31 back to Quito after a long delay over environmental permitting and taxation issues.
Petrobras also operates Block 18 in the Amazon region.
Late last month Correa froze Odebrecht's assets claiming problems in the construction of a hydropower plant. Ecuador then threatened not to pay a $ 243 million debt to Brazilian federal development bank BNDES related to the plant construction.
Correa ordered the seizure of the company's installations in Ecuador.