Alberto Carrasquilla, Minister of Finance (MinHacienda), presented the project for the 2020 General Budget, a week ago. The third and fourth commissions of the Senate and House of Representatives will discuss this project, but this document has already begun to generate controversy.
The Constitutional Court called on the Congress to define participation and coordination mechanisms for the development and follow-up processes of mining projects in Colombia.
The Colombian government has initiated a strategy to boost the exploration and production of hydrocarbons in the country, but concerns about loss of self-sufficiency continue. María Fernanda Suarez, Minister of Mines and Energy (MinEnergia), talked to the possibility of importing natural gas and the need for a new regasification plan in the Pacific.
The private sector is developing an ambitious project to build a new refinery in the country. The project received the resources needed through V.I.P Group International, a private investment fund in the US, and the construction phase could begin soon.
Inhabitants of the Mercaderes municipality (Cauca) arranged a popular consultation themselves, to decide on the future of the industry in their territories.
Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) activated its contingency plan in the municipality of Cubará (Boyacá), after receiving reports of an oil spill in a local water source. The development of these and more stories in our periodic Eco summary.