There is a high possibility that Colombia’s Trasandino pipeline will not resume operations until the end of the year, as stated by Ecopetrol’s CEO in a recent update on May 15. During the presentation of its financial results for the first quarter of the year, the company reported that it has been diverting crude oil transportation through Ecuador since last November due to ongoing thefts.
Why is Colombia’s Trans-Andean Pipeline out of service?
In Colombia, the theft of thousands of barrels of oil per day is a serious problem. This oil is processed in illegal refineries and transformed into a type of smuggled fuel called pategrillo or “cricket foot,” which is then used in illicit activities such as cocaine production and illegal mining. illegal mining .
Due to the increasing thefts, Ecopetrol has decided to keep the Trasandino pipeline, which runs from Putumayo province to Tumaco on the Pacific coast, closed throughout the year for a thorough evaluation, Ricardo Roa, Ecopetrol’s CEO, explained in an interview with Reuters.
The suspension of flow through the pipeline was a direct response to the increased frequency of theft, with approximately 20% of the oil transported, or about 3,000 barrels per day being stolen. Since the company began redirecting the flow of oil to flow of oil through Ecuador through Ecuador, losses have been reduced to just 0.3%, Roa said.
Alliance with Ecuador
Earlier this month, Ecopetrol signed an agreement with Petroecuador to transport up to 22,000 barrels per day through Ecuadorian pipelines. In November 2022, Reuters reported the destruction of an illegal refinery on Colombia’s Pacific coast, noting that oil theft from the Trasandino pipeline had reached almost 1,000 barrels per day.
In addition, Roa commented during the inauguration of a resin recycling plant in Tocancipá, near Bogotá, that the US$20 million facility, operated by Esenttia, a subsidiary of Ecopetrol, has the capacity to recycle 12,000 metric tons of plastic resin annually.
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Source and photo: worldpipelines.com
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