Amazon Watch an earlier court's dismissal on the basis of "forum non conveniens." Thus, legal proceedings were started in Ecuador in 2003. Amazon Watch supports the Ecuadorian plaintiffs by publishing a press kit alleging that Chevron (corporate successor to Texaco) should be held accountable for the dumping of of toxic waste water into a region of Ecuador's Amazon rainforest inhabited by more than 30,000 people – purported to be one of the largest oil related contaminations ever, far exceeding that of the Exxon Valdez disaster. A 2011 decision in Ecuador ordered Chevron to pay $9.5 billion. Ecuador's Supreme Court in 2013 affirmed
Energy policy of Ecuador petrochemical company with a compound currently under development, would allow Ecuador to refine up to 300,000 barrels/day once fully operational. The company is owned by Petroecuador, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, and the China National Petroleum Corporation. The project is estimated to cost $12 billion and return $3 billion/year that would otherwise be spent on refined fuels. It is being constructed in El Aromo, in the coastal province of Manabi. Completion of the refinery would take place in two phases, the first yielding a processing capacity of 200,000 barrels/day and the second adding another 100,000 barrels/day. The necessary access roads and