News and AnalysIs for

A sharp drop in attendance and calls of protest were two of the main takeaways from Ecopetrol’s (NYSE:EC) annual shareholder meeting held last week. Minority shareholders protest as the board of directors vote to not pay dividends this year. The NOC says it needs a US$50/barrel fuel price to reactivate shuttered fields.

The consequences of the fall in oil prices look more severe with each passing month, as producing municipalities have suffered a perfect storm of corruption, poor management, regulatory changes, dwindling royalties and high resident expectations.

With the announcement of formal peace talks between the ELN and the Colombian government, we expect to see a qualitative shift in security results starting next week. So this graph will be our new ‘benchmark’.

As one of his last actions at his post, the Attorney General Eduardo Montealegre has called on judges in Bogotá’s Paloquemao Judicial Complex to hold an audience to bring charges against the the ELN leaders for systematic attacks on oil infrastructure and the resulting environmental damage.

The legal representative of 20% of Pacific E&P (TSX:PRE) investors, Jaime Granados, promised legal action in Colombia if company management enacted a debt for share swap which could mean a total loss of value for the company’s shareholders.

Pacific E&P (TSX:PRE) said that it has been formally notified of the Colombian Constitutional Court’s decision to suspend operations near the Venecedor Piriri indigenous community in the Quifa block. It said it would suspend operations in this area, but that it would not materially affect its production.

We always reserve this spot for our monthly rant about the government’s fuel price formula. New fuel prices are announced on or about the first of the month. But apparently because there is no real MinMinas (the minister in charge, María Lorena Gutiérrez, is only concerned with the electricity crisis), the ministry decided to maintain prices where they were in March. We take the opportunity to update our producer price index graphs.

Guess we can say the rally is officially over. Brent hit a 2016 peak of US$41.20 for the week ending March 18 but has slid in each of the past two weeks. WTI hit its peak last week at US$40.44 but dropped 7.5% this week.

The continued commentary from the Naturgas conference (even though it was before Easter) and Canacol’s results meant the week’s news had a decided bias towards gas.

The USO said that a total of 10 workers have been fired by Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) from the Barrancabermeja Refinery after participating in a strike on March 17^th, which the union said violates the legitimate rights of workers to protest and puts labor stability at risk.