Page 13 - LatAmOil Week 43 2020

LatAmOil COLOMBIA LatAmOil

These six are: CNE Oil & Gas, Colombia Energy for the third permanent process of assigning
Development Co. (CEDCO), Ecopetrol (state- areas,” he was quoted as saying in the agency’s
owned), Hupecol Oriente Colombian Holdings, statement. ™
Ismocol and Mansarovar Energy.
The list also included 10 affiliates of the fol-
lowing international oil companies (IOCs):
Frontera Energy (Canada), GeoPark (Bermu-
da-registered), Geoproduction Oil and Gas
(Switzerland), Gran Tierra Energy (Canada),
Lewis Energy (US), Maurel & Prom (France),
three subsidiaries of Occidental Petroleum (US)
and Parex Resources (Canada).
The 16 authorised companies are now due
to submit their official bids by October 30. They
may also make counter-offers for other assets
by November 17; if they do, the original bidders
will then have until November 30 to submit
revised bids. ANH intends to name the winners
of auctions in which there are no counter-offers
on November 27 and will then name the winner
of auctions with counter-offers on December 14.
Armando Zamora, the president of ANH,
indicated that he was pleased with the strong
show of interest in the third licensing round.
“Colombia offers solid regulation, a favoura-
ble fiscal framework and attractive contractual
conditions, which has established confidence
among the oil companies which have qualified Four blocks are included in the third bidding round (Image: ANH)

Ecopetrol reports sales and

net profits down in Q3-2020

COLOMBIA’S national oil company (NOC) cost-cutting initiatives and better conditions on
Ecopetrol has reported a significant decline in global oil markets.
its financial performance in the third quarter of “The operating and financial results of the
2020. third quarter reflect a better price environment,
In a statement dated October 27, Ecopet- the gradual reactivation across the entire value
rol said that its sales revenues had totalled chain within Ecopetrol group and the progres-
COP12.323 trillion ($3.5bn) between July and sive effect of the adjustment measures we under-
September. This marks a 31.6% drop on the fig- took in the first half of the year,” he commented.
ure of COP18.014 trillion ($4.74bn) posted in “Thus the Ecopetrol group reversed the down-
the same period of 2019, it noted. ward trend of the previous quarters.”
The state-controlled firm also said that its net
profits had amounted to COP855bn ($224.8mn)
in the third quarter. This is 71.6% below the
year-ago figure of COP3.011 trillion ($791.7bn),
it reported.
Likewise, Ecopetrol’s earnings before
interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation
(EBITDA) sank year on year. This index stood
at COP5.254 trillion ($1.38bn) in the third quar-
ter, 36.5% below the figure of COP8.27 trillion
($2.17bn) recorded in the same period of 2019.
Felipe Bayón Pardo, Ecopetrol’s CEO,
acknowledged the y/y declines. He also
asserted, though, that the company’s financial
position had improved since the advent of the
coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, owing to Ecopetrol has worked to cut costs this year (Photo: Colprensa)

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