The ink is barely dry on the most recent tax reform, and already analysts are suggesting the government will have to take further measures to address the budget deficit in 2016 due to the drop in oil prices.
Royalty spending could be cut by 30-40% due to the fall in prices, while the government insists they have a plan. Meanwhile the impact of the price fall is being felt in producing regions as warnings and speculation grows on job losses. These and other stories in this week’s summary of the impact of the fall in the price of oil.
The governors of Meta, Norte de Santander and Putumayo have signed an agreement called the “Regional Alliance of Hydrocarbons” to promote the social and economic development of these producing regions.
“Let’s do the time warp again!” One of the protagonists has changed and at last the government has weighed in but it still feels like 2013 all over again with Naturgas saying there is plenty of gas and an industry association, now the ACP, saying there is not.
Campetrol president Rubén Darío Lizarralde Montoya met with MinMinas Tomás González to talk about the sector and his message emphasized the need to keep exploring, both drilling and shooting seismic.
Press reports appeared that Mauricio de la Mora had been appointed the new head of the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH). But neither the ANH nor MinMinas have said anything officially.
The National Association of Financial Institutions (ANIF) president Sergio Clavijo sounded the alarms and called for greater diversification of the economy.
The government has “concrete solutions” underway to stimulate investment in oil exploration and production as a countermeasure to the curtailed spending due to the fall in oil prices.
The Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP) took up the issue of natural gas, warning that there will be a deficit on the order of 190mmcf as soon as 2018, and that changing the regulations due to political controversy will only deter investment in exploration.
In a presentation to the industry and other interested parties at the ANDI’s ‘Genera’ conference recently, the ANH showed a chart saying there was just over US$7B of investment pending from E&P and TEA contracts.
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