Colombia’s Leader Asks Ecopetrol to Sell Its US Shale Operation

(Bloomberg) -- Colombian President Gustavo Petro called on state oil producer Ecopetrol SA to sell its operations in the US, citing his government’s position against fracking, which he says is destructive to nature and humanity.

Majority state-owned Ecopetrol announced this week it was extending a joint venture with Occidental Petroleum Corp. in the Permian Basin in the southwestern US through June 2026. The final decision rests with Ecopetrol’s board, which has flip-flopped on approving deals on US assets before and whose only two independent members quit last year. 

“I want that operation to be sold to invest in clean energy in Colombia,” Petro told Energy Minister Andres Camacho on Tuesday in a cabinet meeting that was broadcast live. “Let it be discussed technically and economically, but it cannot be that we are for death and not for life.”

The board has already approved investments and drilling activity by the joint venture for the entire extension period, according to BTG Pactual analyst, Daniel Guardiola, who added Ecopetrol’s assets in the US are its best performing. 

“In theory the contract is already signed for one year. But this announcement should bring uncertainty back to the table,” he said.

Ecopetrol didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment. 

Colombia’s leftist leader has called fighting climate change a matter of “life and death,” has proposed a ban on fracking, and refused to grant licenses to explore new natural gas wells, even as the Andean nation faces a shortfall of the fuel.

It’s not the first time that Petro has asked Ecopetrol to backtrack on a deal with Occidental. Last year, Ecopetrol pulled out of a $3.6 billion deal to buy a stake in Texas shale-oil assets from the US company. 

©2025 Bloomberg L.P.