Colombia’s Ecopetrol Profit Soars 235% to US$1.88 Billion in Q2

Energy: Colombia

Colombia’s state-controlled oil major more than tripled its quarterly profit as a Brent rally and record refining margins offset falling crude output, delivering its strongest quarter since late 2022.

What Ecopetrol Reported

Ecopetrol, Colombia’s state-controlled energy group, said on 3 August 2026 that second-quarter net income surged 235% year-on-year to COP$6.06 trillion, up from COP$1.8 trillion in the same period of 2025, according to Reuters and the company’s own disclosure to Colombia’s financial regulator (Reuters via La Nación). Revenue climbed 35% to COP$40.2 trillion from COP$29.7 trillion, while EBITDA jumped 59% to COP$17.7 trillion, pushing the EBITDA margin up 6.5 percentage points to 44% (El Espectador).

The results landed near the top of the company’s own preliminary guidance, published in mid-July, which had pointed to net income of between COP$4.5 trillion and COP$6 trillion for the quarter (La República). It marks a sharp turnaround from the first quarter of 2026, when Ecopetrol posted a 7.7% year-on-year decline in net income to COP$2.9 trillion, its weakest start to a year in several seasons (El Universal).

Results were presented by Juan Carlos Hurtado Parra, Ecopetrol’s acting president, who took over the role again on 31 July 2026 after former CEO Ricardo Roa definitively left the post amid separate legal proceedings (El Espectador). “I believe we are showing positive results this last quarter,” Hurtado told reporters at a press conference, according to the EFE wire service (Infobae/EFE).

Why Profit Surged: The Brent Effect

The single biggest driver was oil prices. Brent crude averaged US$96.7 per barrel in the second quarter, up roughly 45% from US$66.7 a year earlier, according to figures reported by Portafolio (Portafolio). El Espectador linked the rally to the war in the Middle East, which pushed international crude prices sharply higher during the quarter (El Espectador).

Ecopetrol’s own crude export basket averaged US$90.1 per barrel, up from US$63.0 a year earlier, while its refined-product basket averaged US$129.5 per barrel versus US$79.2 in Q2 2025 (Portafolio). Hurtado said the gains came from “better Brent crude oil barrel prices” and “better refined product spreads,” which partly offset a weaker average exchange rate for the company (Infobae/EFE).

That currency effect was real: the average peso-dollar exchange rate strengthened to roughly COP$3,612 per dollar in Q2 2026, from COP$4,199 a year earlier, meaning a stronger peso trimmed some of the dollar-denominated windfall (Portafolio). Even so, the combination of higher crude prices and a historic refining margin was enough to more than triple net income for the quarter.

Segment Breakdown: Refining Shines, Upstream Slips

Refining was the standout. Consolidated throughput rose about 6% year-on-year to roughly 438,500 barrels per day, and the gross refining margin more than doubled to US$29.8 per barrel from US$11.0 a year earlier, lifting refining segment EBITDA to COP$3.1 trillion from COP$665 billion (Portafolio). El Colombiano described the quarter as a historic one for the refining business, with the Cartagena and Barrancabermeja plants both posting sharply higher margins (El Colombiano).

Upstream told a different story. Total hydrocarbon production fell 6.6% year-on-year to about 705,800 barrels of oil equivalent per day, with the group’s Permian assets in the United States down a steep 30% to 80,800 boe/d (Portafolio). Hurtado attributed part of the domestic shortfall to grid-reliability problems tied to an unstable interconnection line and a 76-day blockade by workers in the Orinoquía region that had to be resolved through negotiation (Semana).

Despite lower volumes, the exploration and production segment’s EBITDA still rose nearly 60% to COP$9.5 trillion on the back of higher prices (Portafolio). To rebuild volumes, Ecopetrol said it would launch an additional Permian drilling campaign along with more enhanced-recovery work and new wells in Colombia during the second half of the year (Infobae Colombia).

What It Means for Shareholders and Dividends

The Colombian state, which owns roughly 88% of Ecopetrol, is a direct beneficiary of the rebound. During the quarter, Ecopetrol completed COP$5 trillion in dividend disbursements to its majority shareholder, closing out payments tied to the 2025 fiscal year (El Colombiano).

That payout stems from a dividend of COP$121 per share for fiscal year 2025, approved by shareholders on 27 March 2026 after Colombia’s finance ministry pushed for a higher figure than the board’s original COP$110 proposal. Even so, it remained 43.4% below the COP$214 per share paid out in 2025 for fiscal year 2024, reflecting the previous year’s weaker profit base (Infobae Colombia).

On the investment side, Ecopetrol’s organic capital spending totaled US$2,985 million (about COP$10.9 trillion) for the first half of 2026, with 63% directed to hydrocarbons, 29% to energy transmission and toll roads, and 8% to energy-transition projects; 71% of that spending was executed inside Colombia (Portafolio). The company also flagged cumulative efficiency savings of COP$2.6 trillion for the half, with most of that flowing straight into EBITDA (Portafolio).

Risks and Outlook

Falling production remains the clearest operational risk. Group output of 705,800 boe/d in the quarter was down 6.6% year-on-year and below the company’s own preliminary guidance range of 700,000–710,000 boe/d issued in mid-July, driven by the steep Permian decline, natural decline at Piedemonte fields, and operational disruptions at the CPO-9, Chichimene and Castilla fields in Meta department (Infobae Colombia). Ecopetrol also noted its crude continues to sell at a discount linked to Venezuelan crude’s return to international markets (El Colombiano).

Governance turbulence adds a further layer of uncertainty. Former president Ricardo Roa left the company for good on 30 July 2026 amid separate legal proceedings, and two board members, including the board’s chair, resigned effective 31 July 2026; a new chair and vice-chair were elected as the board runs a selection process for a permanent CEO (El Espectador). Hurtado, in the meantime, said the company is also preparing for El Niño weather effects as part of efforts to keep operations efficient and reliable (Infobae Colombia).

On the balance-sheet side, Ecopetrol’s outstanding receivable from Colombia’s fuel price stabilization fund (FEPC) stood at COP$8 trillion at the end of June and is projected to close 2026 between COP$8 trillion and COP$12 trillion, a variable that will keep weighing on cash flow even as profits recover (El Colombiano). With Brent’s rally tied largely to Middle East tensions, any easing of that conflict could quickly narrow the price advantage that powered this quarter’s results (El Espectador).

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did Ecopetrol’s profit grow in Q2 2026?

Ecopetrol’s net income rose 235% year-on-year to COP$6.06 trillion in the second quarter of 2026, up from COP$1.8 trillion in the same period of 2025, according to Reuters (Reuters via La Nación). It was the company’s strongest quarterly profit since the fourth quarter of 2022, nearly four years earlier (Infobae Colombia).

What drove the jump in earnings?

Higher Brent crude prices — averaging US$96.7 per barrel in Q2 2026, up about 45% year-on-year — combined with record refining margins of US$29.8 per barrel to drive the surge, even as hydrocarbon production fell 6.6% (Portafolio). El Espectador linked the Brent rally to the war in the Middle East (El Espectador).

Did Ecopetrol pay dividends this quarter?

Yes. Ecopetrol completed COP$5 trillion in dividend payments to its majority shareholder, the Colombian state, during the second quarter, closing out the COP$121-per-share dividend approved for fiscal year 2025 (El Colombiano).

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