Thursday, March 5th, 2026
Martín Ravelo, who assumed the presidency of the Unión Sindical Obrera (USO) one month ago, outlined the union’s defense of Colombia’s oil and gas industry and its concerns about the government’s energy transition approach in an interview addressing fracking, Ecopetrol’s challenges, and political developments.
Colombian economic think tank ANIF warned that hourly labor costs will surge 34.7% over approximately one year, rising from CoP$7,736 in the first half of 2025 to CoP$10,422 by the second half of 2026.
Colombia’s foreign direct investment (FDI) totaled US$11.469B in 2025, representing a 16.1% decline from US$13.684B in 2024 and marking a 33.2% cumulative drop since the 2022 peak of US$17.182B.
Parex Resources will invest more than US$100M in two exploratory wells in Colombia’s Piedemonte Llanero region as part of an alliance with Ecopetrol aimed at discovering oil and gas reserves to address the country’s supply challenges.
Ecopetrol generated 87,130 jobs through contractor companies during 2025 while increasing its procurement spending to CoP$23.8T, representing a 4.8% rise from the previous year’s CoP$22.7T according to reports from El Tiempo and La República.
Colombia’s national government announced the appointment of electrical engineer Víctor Paternina as Vice Minister of Energy, bringing over 18 years of energy sector experience. The Sincelejo native, educated at Universidad del Norte with an MBA from Universidad de los Andes, previously served as Energy Director where he structured energy communities and led Colombia Solar public policy definition—key pillars of the just energy transition with territorial and social focus.
GeoPark says it achieved all key 2025 guidance metrics despite materially lower oil prices, while resetting the portfolio, reset positioning the company for scale and growth. The company characterized 2025 as a transition year executing a strategy of “Protecting What We Have, Returning to Growth.”
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