Indian state oil company sets its sights on Colombia

Earlier this week, Colombian business journal Portafolio reported on Indian state-owned oil company ONGC’s plans for international expansion. ONGC already has a presence in Colombia, and according to the company’s international director for exploration, Sudhir Sharma, the company is eager to participate in the next round of auctions by the National Hydrocarbons Agency of Colombia.

Sharma told Portafolio that ONGC aims to double its production within the next four years, and he believes that the company’s expansion in Colombia will be key to achieving this goal. Given the collapse in global oil prices and the total freeze on oil investment in Colombia, the Colombian government and oil industry must be overjoyed to hear that ONGC is so eager to invest in the future of their country’s oil industry. 

In mining related-news, Colombian daily El Tiempo reported on the developing story of the shuttering mines in the Colombian town of Segovia. According to the report, more than 35,000 people in the town will join the miners’ strike to protest the decision by the country’s attorney general to close eight mines that the government has deemed illegal. A national leader for miners’ rights told El Tiempo that, “The business and transportation communities and the mayor are with us. Now we have come to the decision to start a strike that goes against the Machiavellian decision by the Attorney General.”

In other news, the Colombian peso finally started a long-awaited recovery, climbing to below 2800 COP per USD. This was due to the announcement by the Colombian Central Bank to raise interest rates. Until this point, the value of the peso had closely tracked the rise and fall of oil prices.