Ecopetrol sees output and profit fall

Colombia’s Ecopetrol, struggling with lower sales and production, on Tuesday announced a 65% year-on-year drop in net profit for the third quarter of 2016.

The company said its net income over the mentioned period came out at USD 73 million. Sales were down to reach some USD 3.87 billion. While average production during the third quarter showed a 3.9% increase over the preceding three months to 723,000 bopd, output was down 2.5% compared with last year’s 741,000 bopd.

“Favourable price forecasts allowed the company to develop projects in order to gradually increase production of oil by 25,000 barrels per day in 2017 and to reactivate the Cano Sur field, that help mitigate the declining of mature fields, a clear demonstration of its swift ability to respond to environmental conditions,” Juan Carlos Echeverry, Ecopetrol’s chief executive, said in a reaction.

The company is working to raise production to 760,000 boepd in 2016.