Ecopetrol, Colombia’s state oil company, will resume fracking operations, a move that directly contradicts a Constitutional Court ruling from just two years ago that found such pilot projects breached community rights. Joaquin Gutierrez Caballero, the company’s incoming president, announced the decision, stating Ecopetrol would pursue both conventional and unconventional projects. This reversal comes as the nation faces dwindling energy independence, with oil reserves projected to last only 7.4 years and gas for 5.9 years.
Gutierrez Caballero, who managed President Abelardo de la Espriella’s election campaign and possesses no background in the oil industry, declared Ecopetrol was taking charge at a “moment of crisis.” He insisted there was “no room for half measures” as the regime pushes to secure its energy future. The company’s output between April and June registered its weakest quarter in four years, pumping 705,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day.
Elite Decisions, Community Impact
The Constitutional Court ruled in 2024 that Ecopetrol’s two fracking pilot projects, Kale and Platero, located near Puerto Wilches on the Magdalena River, breached community rights. These projects had been suspended in 2022, four years ago, following a court order and a request from Ecopetrol itself. The new leadership's decision to proceed with fracking signals a clear prioritization of state resource extraction over the established rights of native communities.
President Gustavo Petro, in February 2025, one year and seven months ago, asked Ecopetrol to sell its American fracking assets. This directive points to a broader strategy of consolidating national energy control, even as it forces the company to abandon profitable international ventures. The previous government had already blocked a much larger deal in the same Permian Basin, valued at approximately US$3.6 billion, a decision that led to the resignation of two board members.
The Retreat from Global Assets
Ecopetrol currently holds a position in the Permian Basin of Texas, where its output declined to 80,800 barrels a day in the second quarter, down from a peak of 115,000 in 2025. The potential divestment of these assets represents a retreat from global energy markets, forcing the company to rely more heavily on domestic, and often controversial, extraction methods. This shift places the burden of energy security directly on the land and communities within Colombia.
Despite these domestic pressures, Ecopetrol continues offshore exploration. The Sirius deepwater gas find, situated 77 kilometers off Santa Marta, holds more than six trillion cubic feet of gas. Production from this site is planned for the end of 2029, three years and three months from now, with US$2.9 billion allocated for the work. Meanwhile, the company announced a second Ecopetrol headquarters in Barranquilla, on the Caribbean coast, signaling a bureaucratic expansion amidst the national energy crisis.