In this particular instance, the various MNC's had their headquarters in Brazil, France, Spain, and the UK. One of the reasons why MNC's may invest abroad is so that they can utilize the natural resources located within a particular country. Often a third-world country may be rich in resources but has no means to extract those resources for use. MNC's come in to provide those means and make a profit for themselves while doing so. In this case the country of Bolivia is Latin America's second-largest source of gas deposits but it has no indigenous corporations to extract them. The MNC's came and invested $3.5 billion worth of performing this function.

The tension that often comes to exist between the MNC's and their host countries is due to various reasons. One of the foremost reasons is that oftentimes, the country's citizens believe that the MNC is cheating them of the wealth derived from the country's resources. This...

President Mesa's government has become embroiled in tug-of-war between placating either the MNC's, whose investments the country has increasingly come to rely upon, or the local popular groups that threaten to stage mass protests against the government. So far, as his most recent action indicates, President Mesa has decided to side with his country's citizens on the matter.
Works Cited

Forero, Juan. "Foreign Gas Companies in Bolivia Face Sharply Higher Taxes." The New York Times. 18, May 2005: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/18/international/americas/18bolivia.html?ex=1117166400& en=f76c3f532d468f25& ei=5070