10 oil blocks assigned and one block remains in the bidding process.

Concludes hearing of counteroffers of the first auction of the Permanent Area Assignment Process (PPAA) of 2019

At the end of the Counteroffer Hearing of the first auction of the PPAA, held today, the National Hydrocarbons Agency – ANH, confirmed the allocation of 10 blocks out of the 11 that were in dispute, and received a counteroffer from Frontera Energy Colombia Ltd. for block VIM22, located in the Lower Magdalena Valley, to compete with Geopark Colombia S.A.S. which presented the best initial proposal for the area. With this result, the allocation of the 11 blocks represents investment commitments of over 500 million dollars.

According to Luis Miguel Morelli, president of the ANH, «The balance of today's hearing, in which the National Hydrocarbons Agency celebrates 16 years of operation, is excellent news for the country. From this moment, 10 of the 11 blocks in dispute are allocated, contracts that can be signed in the coming days, and one block remains in competition whose definition will be known on July 9, depending on whether the initial proponent improves the received counteroffer. In this first auction, investment commitments of over 500 million dollars have been generated, a figure that, when added to the five offshore contracts already signed, exceeds 1.5 billion dollars. This result, in the first year of President Duque's government, reaffirms the confidence of oil investors in this Administration's efforts to reactivate the sector and restore dynamism to the national economy.»

The counteroffer received today will be validated by the firm Gestión y Auditoría Especializada S.A.S., an independent auditor, and the July 8National Hydrocarbons Agency will publish its acceptance, or not, as Most Favorable Counteroffer(best counteroffer).The July 9, only Geopark Colombia S.A.S. will be able to exercise the option to improve the counteroffer. That day the winner of block VIM22, the last in dispute in the first auction of 2019, will be known.

Source: ANH