Colombian President Moves To Block Ecopetrol Occidental Permian Basin Joint Venture

Just one day after Colombian state-controlled petroleum company Ecopetrol S.A. (BVC: ECOPETROL; NYSE: EC) and Occidental Petroleum Corp (NYSE: OXY) announced the continuation of their joint venture in the Permian Basin oil zone located in the US state of Texas, Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro (above, left) ordered Ecopetrol to cancel the agreement.

Though Ecopetrol is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, the Colombian government controls almost 90% of the shares, and the board of directors is dominated by Petro appointees. Gustavo Petro has held an anti-petroleum and anti-mining stance, and is completely opposed to hydraulic fracturing (fracking) technology in the oil and gas industry.

Referring to the joint venture, Petro said during a televised cabinet meeting, “I want that operation to be sold and to invest the money in clean energies…We are against fracking because fracking is the death of nature and the death of humanity.”

With Petro opposed to drilling in Colombia, Ecopetrol’s Texas operations made up over 11% of the company’s production in 2024. Under Petro’s governance, Colombia has gone from being a net exporter to a net importer of natural gas. Last October, Ecopetrol suspended plans to drill its Komodo-1 well in the Caribbean due to Petro’s opposition. Ecopetrol is led by Ricardo Roa (above, right), appointed as Ecopetrol’s CEO after running Petro’s presidential campaign.

Medellín-based utility Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM) projected during the 2024 Oil & Gas Congress that retail natural gas prices are predicted to rise 100% during 2025 due to the resulting scarcity.

See also: Petro Administration Announces Natural Gas Rationing in Colombia Despite Abundant Hydrocarbon Resources

Above photo: Colombian President Gustavo Petro (l) with campaign manager & now Ecopetrol CEO Ricardo Roa (resolution enhanced photo: ANH)