Significance: The result came off the back of high international oil prices and increased production. Ecopetrol sold its oil at an average price of US$98.4/b in the first half 2011, up from US$78.4/b in the same period of 2010, while total output rose 19.9% year-on-year to over 707,000 barrels per day (b/d). The latest results cement Ecopetrol’s position as the country’s most important company and, notably, oil was Colombia's principal export in the first half. While neighbouring Venezuela reportedly now has the largest oil reserves in the world, the shifting operating environment there deters many risk-averse investors. Colombia, in contrast, has a stable business environment, underlined by Ecopetrol’s newly-acquired investment grade. Ecopetrol plans to take advantage of that new rating to launch a share issue shortly.
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