Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) president Juan Carlos Echeverry said that the firm does not see short term relief in the price of crude, and that it will continue “in crisis mode” for the foreseeable future, even for the next five years.
Recently I found myself in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) explaining the impact of lower oil prices to an audience of telecom managers, the vast majority of them Saudis.
Last week’s announcement of 916 mbd for March production was a shocker but MinMinas said nothing about why it happened. Virtually the next day, April 22, 2016, the ANH published field level detail for January and February (but not, unfortunately, March).
The USO said that its actions to oppose fracking through marches and to demand the government ban the process has made it the target of the national police and it has sounded an urgent alarm for greater protection.
While there have been advances in mapping the potential and developing regulations to accommodate unconventional production in Colombia, critical parts of the regulatory framework are still missing and high costs / low oil prices do not help.
The recent decision to reverse an environmental license issued to Hupecol for exploration in the Serranía block due a public outcry has the Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP) concerned for the lack of coherence in applying its policies, which risks lost investment and legal stability.
The Colombian government said it raised US$530M in 2015 for the post conflict transition, while the Economist claims that the Farc is sitting on a secret stash of as much as US$10.5B, a claim the guerrilla denies.
After having its environmental license revoked days after it was approved by the National Environmental Licensing Agency (ANLA), Hupecol said that it is looking at either a lawsuit against the state or an arbitration to resolve the issue and be compensated.
The State Council ruled against Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) and said that an administrative ruling that stemmed from a public referendum against oil activities in Tauramena was not its business, and rather it should be decided by a different court. Local press have labeled it as a win for the residents opposed to exploration and production activities.
The government is mulling changes in the organization of the entities which approve royalty projects, the OCADS, to encourage large scale, high-impact initiatives instead of small scale, local pet projects, and to address a trend of stagnated advances. This is “contrary to the philosophy” of the royalty reforms, officials say. This and other royalty related stories in our periodic round-up.
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