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As part of its strategy to increase the longevity of Colombia’s proven crude reserves the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) wants to grow the average recovery factor to 35% from the current average of 18%, by 2020.

The General Comptroller’s (CGR) environmental delegate office said that the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) has exposed the environment and country to undue risks by not doing further studies into the impact of fracking before including blocks in the Colombia Round 2014. The CGR also announced it will be focusing more on the use of royalty funds and plans a series of audits and inspections in the second half of this year.

Colombia’s corporate regulator (Supersociedades) has created an “elite group” of experts to deal with a growing number of bankruptcies and company restructuring due to the oil price crisis, in the first quarter of the year the company registered two bankruptcies and 12 restructuring of service firms.

The new National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) president Mauricio de la Mora met with the president of the Chamber of Oil Goods and Services (Campetrol) Rubén Darío Lizarralde, to discuss a joint strategy to strengthen the oil sector.

The director of the National Planning Department (DNP) Simón Gaviria said that the General Royalty System (SGR) has approved CoP2.23T (US$864.9M) in funds and incentives that will compensate producing regions in light of the fall in oil prices and its consequences.

The official Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC), is still in the works and the president of the Natural Gas Association (Naturgas) Eduardo Pizano says that investments in infrastructure expansion are held up as a result.

Colombia’s reserves are dwindling, and exploration programs have suffered a drastic fall compared to last year, prompting speculation that Colombia could have to start importing crude in the not so distant future.

Time is up on a 90-day period given by the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MinMinas) to local municipalities and districts to present details of protected areas, with authorities and advocates questioning the timing and reach of the decree.

Following a meeting between the USO oil workers union president Edwin Castaño and a number of government ministers, vice ministers and the head of the National Planning Department (DNP) Simon Gaviria, the union said that it would not hold an indefinite strike after Gaviria made statements that Ecopetrol would not be privatized.

The Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP) has again called on the government to take immediate action to avoid that more exploration projects are shuttered or halted.