ACP as a source of information
Source: Portafolio – National
Author: Rafael Herz*
Date: February 07
Headline: The dangerous polarization
This era is marked by electoral polarization and represented in discussions on relevant issues. In the United States, everything seems to indicate that the elections will be between the current president, a symbol of extreme positions on issues such as immigration or climate change, and a Democratic opponent (possibly Warren or Sanders), who represent a radical shift in economic, energy, and social policy. It has been more than five decades since an election has been marked by such difference and belligerence. *Vice President of the ACP. Responded in: portafolio.co (February 06).
Source: portafolio.co – National
Date: February 06
Headline: A matter of time, effects of the coronavirus on the Colombian economy
The coronavirus, the Chinese virus that has already caused almost 500 deaths and 25,000 infections worldwide, has begun to affect the global economy with the closure of thousands of factories and businesses in that country, the suspension of commercial flights to and from that nation, the decline in domestic consumption, but above all by keeping almost 100 million people in quarantine, considering that the Chinese economy represents almost 17% of the total world GDP. (…) Juan Carlos Echeverry, former Minister of Finance and former president of Ecopetrol, states that “So far there is uncertainty, we must keep the alerts on but there is no reason for alarm. Now, if the crisis extends too much (about six months) and fully materializes it would be like the end of the party for Colombia, which comes with a fairly good economy.” (…) Portafolio.co tried to learn from Francisco José Lloreda, president of the Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP), about the effects that the coronavirus could have on the country's crude oil production and export but the guild responded that «this time we are not going to comment on the issue.».
Source: paisminero.com – National
Date: February 06
Headline: In one year, Anla has received 80 license applications
The entity's goal is to resolve these environmental permits before the end of 2020. So far, 56 have received approval. In the last year, the National Authority of Environmental Licenses (Anla) has received for study and approval 80 applications for the development of mining and oil projects in the country. (…) “Work agendas have been developed with the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), the National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH), the National Mining Agency (ANM), and the Colombian Geological Service (SGC) to understand where the great bet of the sectors is, and to have greater technical capacity regarding the decisions that may be made,” said Rodrigo Suárez Castaño, director of Anla. (…) In this regard, Francisco José Lloreda, president of the Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP), indicated that the companies in the sector he represents, “consider that the relationship with environmental authorities, particularly with Anla, has improved, and there has been progress with the issuance of the new moratorium decree.”.
GREMIO
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: Bonds and stocks, the face and the cross of the Colombian market
On one hand, everything seems prepared for the fixed income market in Colombia to advance this year in its recovery, which could lead bond placements to a historic high. On the other hand, the stock market struggles to reactivate, after several years without IPOs and with fewer and fewer companies. (…) As Daniel Velandia, director of economic studies at Credicorp Capital, explains, “recently, in addition to little movement, we have seen a thinning of the equity market in Colombia, which is reflected in three names: one is Pacific Rubiales, which went bankrupt; another is when Isagen exited after the sale of the company, and the third, which is the most recent, is the one that will happen with Éxito, which is about to delist and no longer has liquidity. Along with this, it is worth mentioning that the last time we had an issuer coming to market was the case of Terpel, since then there has been nothing relevant.”.
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: Colombia needs $30 billion to complete its road map
Road infrastructure in Colombia has advanced more in the last 10 years than in several decades; however, it would still need about $30 billion to reach a good port. (…) And he concluded by saying that while the sale of 8.5% of Ecopetrol – from which the country can still exit – and the divestitures below 49% would be important to fund the necessary roads, these resources would be insufficient and a more aggressive privatization plan would be necessary. (…) Under an optimistic scenario, the government of Iván Duque would manage to gather the political capital to carry out privatizations of public assets that provide resources of at least 1% of GDP (including the 8.5% of Ecopetrol, Cenit, and ISA, or a combination of those options).
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: Geopark's operation in Colombia grew fourfold
For the country's oil sector, there is no doubt that the company GeoPark will be a benchmark in the industry for the coming years by positioning itself at the forefront of hydrocarbon activity in the national territory. The reason, in just eleven months, the company quadrupled its oil tasks by moving from six to 24 blocks for development in exploration and production. The first step in its expansion strategy was presented in June 2019, when it partnered with Hocol (a subsidiary of Ecopetrol) and equally (50%) with the blocks LLA-86, LLA-87, and LLA-104 offered in the first auction of the Permanent Process of Area Assignment (PPAA). (…) The three blocks are located in the municipalities of Puerto Gaitán and Puerto López (Meta); as well as Maní, Monterrey, Tauramena, and Villanueva (Casanare), they are adjacent to block LLA-34, operated by GeoPark with a production of 70,200 barrels per day (bpd).
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: With Petrobras, Brazil accelerates privatizations
The Brazilian state development bank sold its voting stake in the oil giant Petróleo Brasileiro SA, raising 22 billion reais (US$5.200 million) as part of a wave of asset sales aimed at reversing years of increasing government influence in the largest economy in the region. (…) “Unless oil prices continue to be an obstacle, there should be more room for a rise now that the burden of the sale is behind.” The stock sale is the largest in Brazil since the record US$70 billion Petrobras offering ten years ago. In 2010, the company was a thriving oil powerhouse with ambitions to more than triple production and consolidate its monopoly in a massive offshore oil discovery.
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: Achieving fiscal goals in 2020 will be a challenge: Fitch
The tax reform approved last year will lead to a significant drop in revenues this year. This alert, which had already been confirmed by research centers in the country, was confirmed by Fitch Rating, which added that this situation reinforces the idea that achieving fiscal deficit targets will be challenging. (…) “We estimate that the reform could result in a revenue loss estimated at 1% of GDP with the additional measures,” the firm added in its report. And it went further by pointing out that the accounts made by the Executive to achieve fiscal balance, which included dividends from Ecopetrol and the Banco de la República, will help contain fiscal performance this year, but these are gains that are not permanent and will have an impact on the figures for 2021 and 2022.
Topics
Source: Portafolio
Date: February 07
Headline: Brent remains below US$55 after OPEC agreement
The rebound that the Brent price managed to register during the week did not last long, and yesterday it suffered a setback in the price of its barrel once again, as Opec+ members failed to reach an agreement on reducing crude oil production to face the coronavirus crisis. Yesterday, the Brent barrel ended the day with a price of US$54.93, which represents a decrease of 0.63% compared to the level it had a day earlier, which was US$55.28, so the oil reference will remain below US$55.
Source: larepublica.co
Date: February 07
Headline: Opec members suggested stopping the production of 600,000 barrels of oil per day.
In the capital of Austria, Vienna, a technical committee of countries from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and its allies (Opec+) met to discuss the impact of the coronavirus on the oil market. After several hours of discussions, it was revealed that the group recommended a provisional reduction in crude oil production of 600,000 barrels per day. (…) After the news broke, Germán Espinosa, executive president of Campetrol, explained that Russia's decision “responds to the fact that the coronavirus situation could be temporary and not significantly affect crude oil demand, so if new cuts are agreed upon, Opec+ would face the risk of losing significant power over the aggregate crude supply as soon as the situation stabilizes. Despite this decision, it was noted from Moscow that they will study the situation and evaluate how the market develops in the coming days, without ruling out that an extension of the cut could be agreed upon.” (…) Regarding price volatility, Espinosa said, “if high volatility in prices continues, and the downward trend persists, the impacts on economies with high dependence on oil could be reflected in crude oil revenue. Even so, the market will be waiting for the evolution of the coronavirus.”.
Source: portafolio.co
Date: February 07
Headline: The annoying export fragility. By. Andrés Espinosa Fenwarth
Colombia's commercial deterioration is worsening. The preliminary results for 2019 are far from encouraging. The trade balance of our country, which measures the difference between exports and imports recorded by Dane, could close last year with a trade deficit close to 11.659 million dollars, resulting from Colombia's extreme export fragility and the sustained import appetite of our entrepreneurs. (…) In particular, 57 percent of Colombia's total exports correspond to products from the mining-energy sector (oil, coal, gold, ferronickel, and emeralds) and the remaining 13 percent to basic agricultural goods (coffee, flowers, bananas, sugar, and palm). The same as back then, now.
Source: blogs.portafolio.co
Date: February 07
Headline: Coronavirus and its Impact on Colombian Companies
The colloquial phrase coined by many economists, “when China sneezes, the world catches a cold,” could not be more graphic and real today with the situation we are experiencing since the first outbreaks of the coronavirus in Wuhan. To understand how an epidemic occurring in such a distant place can affect almost our entire economy, we must begin by clarifying that China is the second strongest economic power in the world, after the United States. Furthermore, this Asian economy is also the largest holder of U.S. Treasury bonds, which gives it special relevance. (…) Colombia's main exports in order of importance are Oil, Coal, and Coffee. So, if the price in dollars of oil decreases, obviously fewer dollars will enter Colombia. The law of supply and demand applies equally to the dollar, so if there are fewer dollars, the price of the currency rises.
Institutional
Source: El Tiempo
Date: February 07
Headline: Regulate works by royalties
With the signing of decree 098 on January 28, the Government, through the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the National Planning Department, regulated the scheme of works by royalties, allowing oil and mining companies to manage these resources through the development and construction of projects in the regions where they operate. To use the mechanism, companies must have had revenues of more than 1.151.8 million pesos in the previous fiscal year and make agreements with municipalities and governorships, as applicable, to formulate and execute the respective projects.
Source: prensalibrecasanare.com
Date: February 07
The Representative to the Chamber for the Department of Casanare, César Ortiz Zorro, attended the meeting with the Minister of Mines and Energy, María Fernanda Suárez, to agree on the draft Law that will regulate Legislative Act No. 05 of 2019, by which the General System of Royalties is reformed, of which he is also the author. He considered it important that his past proposals coincide with a large part of the text of the draft Law that will regulate the constitutional reform, which will benefit the more agile and efficient execution of investment projects of the royalties. The Representative has promoted the elimination of the OCAD for the direct royalties of the departments and producing municipalities, and of the local allocation for the poorest municipalities in the country. He assured that in this way the principles of autonomy and decentralization of these territorial entities are rescued, which will be able to directly evaluate, make viable, approve, and prioritize their own investment projects.
Source: La Crónica del Quindío
Date: February 06
Headline: Pilot project of fracking: “can provide insights”; “proposal is risky”
The draft decree that would regulate exploration was submitted for community consideration. Minminas has not announced changes. Colombia remains expectant regarding the pilots that would be carried out this year for the exploration of hydraulic fracturing in unconventional oil and gas deposits, better known as fracking, which, according to sector entrepreneurs, must be done as soon as possible, while a large part of the population opposes the practice. The Ministry of Mines and Energy published, just over a month ago, the first draft of the decree that would regulate the pilot, with the purpose of allowing citizens to make the respective observations.
Source: Diario del Norte.
Date: February 06
Headline: Ministry of Mines already has the requirements for fuel stations in La Guajira
The efforts of the departmental government to resolve the crisis related to fuel quotas for the stations continue to be presented from Bogotá. The Secretary of Government of La Guajira, Jairo Aguilar Deluque, reported that he managed to hold a meeting with the director of Hydrocarbons of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, José Manuel Moreno, where he delivered the document of requirements and requests from the owners of fuel stations in the Department. (…) Likewise, he indicated that it is expected that next week the Ministry of Mines and Energy will begin to take consistent actions to solve the problem of fuel quotas for the stations in La Guajira.
Colombian Association of Oil and Gas