Illegal mining and the clearing of lands for grazing has been fingered as a main cause for deforestation, while in Casanare a number of community conflicts are brewing over environmental issues. These and other environmental stories in our periodic summary.
The Colombian Petroleum Association released the results of a study on investment trends and found that the tax reform of 2014 has led to a poor investment climate which has resulted in a 28% fall in CAPEX in 2015 when compared to the year prior, with exploration taking the biggest hit.
After much fanfare the Minister of Mines and Energy Tomás González announced that authorities had reached an agreement with lawmakers and industry delegates from the Caribbean coast that would mean no new price increases for natural gas, to the dismay of gas producers. But now it emerges that the magic formula is in fact, optional.
The USO has taken up a new argument to criticize Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC), now accusing the NOC of weakening safety controls and covering up injuries and fatalities during the modernization process.
Editor’s Note: ACIPET, the association of Colombian petroleum engineers, is an active voice for policy change in the sector. Its recently-appointed Executive Director, Juan Carlos Rodriguez, speaks frequently to the press on what the government is doing right and not doing right.
In our analysis of Ecopetrol’s 3Q15 results we reported that CEO Juan Carlos Echeverry had said the NOC was outperforming its global peers.