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Thursday, August 25, 2011

Colombia Ecopetrol misses share sale goal

Ecopetrol sold 1.6 pct stake, less than planned 1.67 pct

Not planning to sell more shares in the short term

Oil price, global economic turmoil hurt share sale

Colombia's largest oil producer, Ecopetrol (ECO.CN)(EC.N), sold slightly less shares than planned due to a fall in global oil prices and world financial market turmoil, the state-run oil company said on wednesday.

Fears have mounted that the developed world is shifting from slow growth to no growth hitting financial markets exacerbated by the recent downgrade of U.S. debt by a Wall Street ratings agency, while spot oil prices have also fallen.

Amid crises like these, investors stick their hands in their pockets and don't take out any money," Ecopetrol President Javier Gutierrez told reporters.

The company sold a 1.6 percent stake for 2.4 trillion pesos ($1.35 billion), slightly less than the planned 1.67 percent stake for which they expected to get 2.5 trillion pesos.

Originally, the company had said it could sell more shares if demand was high.

Gutierrez also said the company was not planning to sell more shares in the "short term."

The shares are part of the 9.9 percent stake Ecopetrol plans to sell to finance a recapitalization program of Colombia's biggest oil company.

Ecopetrol sold 10.1 percent of its shares in 2007 in its first offering.

Ecopetrol plans to spend $80 billion to bolster its production to 1.3 million barrels per day by 2020 from its current levels of more than 700,000 bpd.

Colombia, Latin America's No. 4 oil producer, has seen a massive increase in oil and mining investment since a U.S. backed crackdown against rebels dramatically improved security. ($1=1,781.91 pesos).

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