Ecopetrol Plans Recovery Under New Chief

COLOMBIA · ECOPETROL · OIL AND GAS

Colombia’s state-controlled oil company has a new chief, a rebuilt management team and a government that wants a “rebirth”, but we found no published numerical targets.

Ecopetrol, Colombia’s state-controlled oil company, is being rebuilt around a new chief, Joaquín Gutiérrez Caballero, and a government plan that President Abelardo de la Espriella calls the “renacer”, or rebirth, of the company. What has been decided so far is the chief, a new team of vice presidents and a policy of reopening exploration and fracking, while we found no published production, investment or profit targets for the Ecopetrol recovery plan itself.

For US investors the stake is a stock that trades in New York as the American depositary receipt NYSE: EC and closed at US$17.80 on Friday 23 October 2026, up 4.6% on the day, in Rio Times market data. Dollar values in this article use 3,158.43 pesos per US dollar, the official market rate (TRM) in force from Saturday 24 to Monday 26 October 2026, as published on Colombia’s open-data portal.

Who Runs Ecopetrol Now

Ecopetrol’s board chose Joaquín Gutiérrez Caballero unanimously on Thursday 24 September 2026, and he took office on Monday 28 September, the company’s release says. Infobae adds that the board had been renewed at an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting on Tuesday 15 September, which replaced six of the names on a nine-member board.

Gutiérrez is a business administrator with three specializations, in telecommunications project management, telecommunications law and health-services management, and the company describes a career in law, health, construction, farming and cattle. Infobae reports that he managed De la Espriella’s presidential campaign and has no earlier experience in hydrocarbons, and before his appointment El Colombiano reported that workers and people close to the company questioned his profile.

Ecopetrol’s release gives him the mission of building “bridges of trust” with the state, workers, regions, communities, investors and partners. It adds that he will start a recovery process to straighten the institutional course after what it calls alleged acts of corruption that harmed the company’s reputation and management.

“Ecopetrol does not belong to the president, nor to the government, much less to a political party.”
President Abelardo de la Espriella at the swearing-in in Santa Marta on 25 September, as quoted by Infobae (translated from Spanish)

What the Government Has Set Out

At a ceremony called Renacer de Ecopetrol on Friday 25 September 2026 at the Quinta de San Pedro Alejandrino in Santa Marta, De la Espriella said his government “fully reopens the path of exploration and of signing new contracts, including fracking”, with “absolutely all criteria of environmental responsibility”. Infobae reports that he gave the company two tasks, to keep the hydrocarbons business going by replacing reserves and guaranteeing supply, and to find new energy sources and businesses that can pay their own way.

Gutiérrez told the same ceremony that Ecopetrol will advance conventional and unconventional projects, “implement responsible fracking” and keep exploring offshore, and that Barranquilla will get a new alternate headquarters. Infobae adds that he named exploration, adding reserves, gas supply and tax disputes as his priorities.

Ecopetrol reported proved reserves of 1.944 billion barrels of oil equivalent at the end of 2025, Valora Analitik reported in February, and Infobae puts their average life at 7.8 years, with gas at 6.3 years. The president says these indicators force Colombia to find new resources instead of importing energy it could produce, while Fitch put reserve life at 7.1 years at the end of 2025, Valora Analitik reported.

The Management Team Is Being Rebuilt

On Wednesday 30 September 2026 the board approved three vice presidents, who were to join by Tuesday 6 October, Blu Radio reports: Mónica Jiménez González for legal affairs and the secretary-general post, Mauricio Gutiérrez for corporate strategy and new businesses, and Camilo Rojas for administration and services, which covers contracting and procurement. Jiménez held the legal post from 2016 to 2022, and the company said the changes aim to strengthen key capabilities for its new stage.

Portafolio reports that the board then named José Eduardo Barreneche Ávila corporate compliance director on Thursday 15 October, replacing Rodolfo Mario García, who left on Tuesday 13 October by mutual agreement. On Wednesday 21 October it named Armando José Cuello Navarro, a former vice minister of energy, executive vice president for energy transition, with gas supply and energy security in his brief, as part of what Ecopetrol calls its “Nueva Era”, or new era, strategy.

What the Third-Quarter Outlook Shows

Ecopetrol’s preliminary update for the third quarter, which ended on 30 September, points to output of 740 to 750 thousand barrels of oil equivalent a day (mboed), up from 705.8 mboed in the second quarter. The range includes all of Brava’s output from the acquisition date, and Brava is the Brazilian producer in which Ecopetrol bought a 51% stake and which made about 78.8 mboed in the first half of 2026, Valora Analitik reported in August.

The same update projects lower profit than the second quarter, with EBITDA, which is operating profit before interest, tax and depreciation, and net income both below the earlier levels. Ecopetrol calls the figures preliminary and says they may change before final results.

Why Output Fell and Where Debt Stands

The second-quarter report ties the 49.7 mboed fall in output from a year earlier mainly to 33.3 mboed less from the Permian Basin in the United States, which it says matched the investment plan, and 13.7 mboed less gas and natural gas liquids. Expected growth in domestic oil was delayed by external disruptions and electrical incidents, including blockades in the department of Meta that cost an estimated 1.3 million barrels in the first half.

Juan Carlos Hurtado Parra, the acting chief executive at the time, signed that report, and Gutiérrez took office only two days before the third quarter ended, so both quarters mostly reflect the previous management. His first full quarter is the fourth, which ends on 31 December.

At the end of June the group held COP 11.3 trillion (about US$3.6 billion) in cash and cash equivalents, and its gross debt was 2.0 times EBITDA, below the company’s 2026 ceiling of 2.5 times. On Tuesday 20 October 2026 Fitch affirmed Ecopetrol at BB with a stable outlook, and Ecopetrol says Fitch also kept its stand-alone profile at bbb- and does not expect difficulty in refinancing the debt due in 2027.

What It Means for You

Ecopetrol’s American depositary receipts closed at US$17.80 on Friday 23 October 2026, up 4.6% on the day and up from US$17.01 on Thursday, in Rio Times market data. Ecopetrol’s own register shows JPMorgan Chase Bank, which holds shares for holders of the receipts, with 2.77% of the company on 8 September, while Colombian government entities held 88.49%.

That makes US holders minority investors beside a government that has set the direction in public, from reopening exploration to allowing fracking. Fitch’s BB rating is one outside signal so far, and it sits below investment grade even though Ecopetrol says Fitch rates its stand-alone profile at bbb-, which is investment grade.

Brent crude traded above US$110 a barrel on Friday, in Rio Times market data, well above the US$91.0 average price that Ecopetrol assumed for the third quarter. Higher prices help revenue, but production is the weaker part of the story, so the output figure in the full results will matter more than the oil price.

What Is Not Known

We found no document from Ecopetrol or the ministries that sets production, investment or profit targets for the recovery, and El Diario’s report of Saturday 24 October names no ministers and gives no production, investment or profit figures. The aims it lists, more production and more capital, are its own summary because it credits them to no speaker.

It is also not known how much of the third-quarter production gain comes from Brava, or when Ecopetrol will publish its full third-quarter results. The company says its preliminary figures remain subject to review and may be adjusted.

The US Embassy said on Friday 23 October that it discussed American investment opportunities with Gutiérrez, but neither the embassy’s post nor Portafolio’s account names any amount, project or financing. Infobae reports that the Council of State and the Inspector General’s Office have objected to fracking, so whether it can proceed is not settled.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Ecopetrol’s new chief?

Joaquín Gutiérrez Caballero, a business administrator, took over on Monday 28 September 2026 after the board chose him unanimously. Infobae reports that he managed President Abelardo de la Espriella’s campaign and has no earlier oil-industry experience.

What is the Ecopetrol recovery plan?

The government calls it the “rebirth of Ecopetrol” and has said it will reopen exploration and allow fracking. We found no document with production, investment or profit targets.

How can US investors follow Ecopetrol?

Ecopetrol’s American depositary receipts trade in New York as NYSE: EC and closed at US$17.80 on Friday 23 October 2026. Holders are minority investors, because Colombian government entities own 88.49% of the shares.

Is Ecopetrol investment grade?

No, Fitch rates Ecopetrol BB with a stable outlook, which is below investment grade, though Ecopetrol says Fitch rates its stand-alone profile bbb-, which is investment grade. Fitch affirmed the BB rating on Tuesday 20 October 2026.

What did Ecopetrol forecast for the third quarter?

Its preliminary outlook expects output of 740 to 750 thousand barrels of oil equivalent a day, including all of Brava’s output since the acquisition. It also expects net income of about US$1.3 billion to US$1.6 billion.

Sources: Ecopetrol, release on the new president, 24 September 2026, Ecopetrol, operating and financial update 3Q 2026 (preliminary), Ecopetrol, second-quarter 2026 report, Ecopetrol, ownership information, 8 September 2026, Infobae, 24 September 2026, Infobae, 26 September 2026, El Heraldo, 22 October 2026, El Diario, 24 October 2026, El Colombiano, on the choice of Gutiérrez, Blu Radio, three new vice presidents, Portafolio, compliance director, 15 October 2026, La República, compliance director, Portafolio, Fitch affirmation, 20 October 2026, Valora Analitik, Fitch affirmation, 20 October 2026, Valora Analitik, Ecopetrol reserves, 19 February 2026, Valora Analitik, Brava Energía, 25 August 2026, Colombian open-data portal, official market rate (TRM), Portafolio, energy transition vice president, 21 October 2026, Portafolio, US Embassy meeting, 23 October 2026. Retrieved 25 October 2026. Market data from Rio Times (Friday 23 October close).

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief