Napo

Tropical province in northeast Ecuador; area 49,000 sq km/18,919 sq mi; population (1996) 141,776. The capital is Tena. Napo lies in the Oriente tropical lowland region, which is covered with dense forest and jungle, and remained virtually undeveloped until oil was discovered in the Lagio Agrio area. Production began in 1972, and exploration has now extended into the far east of the region around Nuevo Rocafuerte. Pipelines run from the interior to Puerto Balao, on the Ecuadorean coast, and north through Colombia to Tumaco.

Until 1959, Napo was joined with the province of Pastaza in a single province known as Napo-Pastaza.