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Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) awarded a group of 24 suppliers whose performance as contractors stood out as a model in 2013 in a ceremony held in Bogotá.

Estimates from Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) are that upcoming phases of the current modernization work at the Barrancabermeja Refinery will employ up to 5000 people at its peak of activity in 2014.

The Ministry of Mines and Energy (MinMinas) has presented its formula to lower fuel costs at the pump and also believes that the modernization of national refineries could also contribute to a lower price in the midterm.

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) is launching a pilot plant that will implement a chemical recovery technology in its 28-year-old San Francisco field as part of a larger strategy to increase production in mature fields.

The economic model used to determine the price of fuel for the consumer is set to be a central theme for debate as Colombia moves into an election year, but several experts asked by the local press concur that the main refinery producer, Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) will continue producing fuel regardless.

An article in the local paper Noticiero del Llano quoting unnamed “ecologists” is calling on Ecopetrol to assume the social responsibility of exploration and production, and called on readers to voice concerns to a mobile unit of the NOC designed to receive complaints from the community.

The government is presenting a new formula to calculate fuel prices and the Ministry of Mines and Energy says it has a plan that will not sacrifice income for Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC).

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) highlighted the results of the recent bilateral negotiation, part of the government’s effort to redefine the commercial structure of natural gas in Colombia and lower prices for the final consumer.

Ecopetrol (NYSE: EC) spoke to investors last week and one of the upbeat stories was about exploration, something the NOC often gets criticized for.

Ecopetrol’s (NYSE:EC) president Javier Gutiérrez said that the Asian market is emerging as a key receiver of Colombian oil while the US increases its self sufficiency in energy matters, and says the country is competitive in the Orient.