LatinNews Daily - 16 September 2026

*Shareholders at Colombia’s state oil company Ecopetrol have approved an overhaul of the company’s executive board, which was reportedly proposed by the new government led by President Abelardo de la Espriella in response to allegations of corruption at the company under his predecessor, Gustavo Petro (2022-2026). This comes as the previous day Ecopetrol announced that the company’s president, Juan Carlos Hurtado Parra, would be replaced on an interim basis by Alfonso Camilo Barco Muñoz. Barco was previously vice president of finance at Ecopetrol and has held various executive positions in the public and private sector. His predecessor, Hurtado, was appointed on an interim basis in April after Petro ally Ricardo Roa, who headed the company from 2023-2026, stood down amid an influence peddling investigation. The following month, Roa was charged in a separate case with alleged campaign finance violations relating to Petro’s 2022 election campaign, which Roa directed.