A bomb attack over the weekend by the Marxist ELN rebels has halted the flow of crude along Colombia’s second-largest oil pipeline, the Cano-Limon Covenas, sources from the military and state-run oil company Ecopetrol said on June 20.
The explosion took place on June 17 in a rural area of Saravena municipality, in the province of Arauca. Though the 485-mile (780-km) pipeline was stopped, operations at the Cano Limon Field, operated by U.S.-based Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY), and exports were unaffected.
Attacks on oil infrastructure by the National Liberation Army, or ELN, have been frequent during the group’s five-decade war with the government. There have been 32 bombings so far this year, according to Ecopetrol, and frequently cause environmental damage.
The ELN has about 2,000 combatants and opposes the presence of multinational companies in the mining and oil sector, claiming that they seize natural resources without leaving benefits for the country’s population or economy.
President Juan Manuel Santos and the ELN in February launched formal peace negotiations in Ecuador, but the group has stepped up its attacks since.
Recommended Reading
Green Swan Seeks US Financing for Global Decarbonization Projects
2024-02-21 - Green Swan, an investment platform seeking to provide capital to countries signed on to the Paris Agreement, is courting U.S. investors to fund decarbonization projects in countries including Iran and Venezuela, its executives told Hart Energy.
BP Pursues ‘25-by-‘25’ Target to Amp Up LNG Production
2024-02-15 - BP wants to boost its LNG portfolio to 25 mtpa by 2025 under a plan dubbed “25-by-25,” upping its portfolio by 9% compared to 2023, CEO Murray Auchincloss said during the company’s webcast with analysts.
Sunoco’s $7B Acquisition of NuStar Evades Further FTC Scrutiny
2024-04-09 - The waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act for Sunoco’s pending acquisition of NuStar Energy has expired, bringing the deal one step closer to completion.
From Restructuring to Reinvention, Weatherford Upbeat on Upcycle
2024-02-11 - Weatherford CEO Girish Saligram charts course for growth as the company looks to enter the third year of what appears to be a long upcycle.
TechnipFMC Eyes $30B in Subsea Orders by 2025
2024-02-23 - TechnipFMC is capitalizing on an industry shift in spending to offshore projects from land projects.