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Casanare Chamber of Commerce (CCC) created the Oil & Gas Cluster to help the services business in Casanare, presenting proposals to improve processes in the oil industry. The first initiative was announced in recent days.

Communities often complain about low hiring of local labor. Authorities have issued a new regulation on this subject for department of Meta.

GeoPark (NYSE: GPRK), Parex (TSX:PXT) and Equion celebrated positive results regarding social development projects in their areas of influence, but strikes in the Casabe field against Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC), and in the Maní municipality against Tuscany Drilling (TSE:TID) for alleged lack of local labor hiring overshadowed the good news. These and other Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) stories in our periodic summary.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) and Pemex recently signed a document to study joint ventures in E&P, and now executives of both NOCs signed an agreement that allows the joint development of mature fields, enhanced recovery technologies and offshore exploration.

The Government formally requested Colombia’s early validation to the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI), and will sponsor the Dominican Republic’s entry

USO expressed their concern regarding Barrancabermeja Refinery’s infrastructure conditions and said a modernization must be done. They said that despite the partial success in negotiations with Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC), dialogues with Adrialpetrol failed because the company was “not ready to commit to an agreement.”

Several legislators and directors of public agencies participated in a forum organized by the presidency of the Senate. The event was held in Villavicencio. The National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) was present.

With the ‘no-cost assignment’ method, Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) delivered essential materials that helped communities in Norte de Santander and Magdalena Medio execute housing projects, and rural communities in Yopal showed their gratitude towards Equion’s social investment projects in the region. These and other Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) news in our periodic summary.

Huila’s entrepreneurs gave a rational perspective on the oil snd gas industry’s performance at an international and local level.

As a way to protest against the low salaries and lack of health benefits that Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) allegedly imposed to its workers, USO announced a ‘national mobilization and protest day’. The Union also denounced supposed threats against its Magdalena Medio leaders, and reported it is currently mediating between the NOC and communities in Putumayo.