Colombian crude output could be 22% lower by 2018

摘要

Bogota—Colombia stands to see 220,000 b/d, or more than 20% of its current crude production, disappear by 2018 as a result of reduced exploration budgets if lower oil prices are the new normal, the nation’s top hydrocarbons trade group said Tuesday. The warning from the Colombian Petroleum Association came just days after the mining and energy ministry reported that 2014 crude production averaged 988,100 b/d in 2014, down 2% from the 1,007,000 b/d pumped in 2013. The year-on-year decline broke an eight-year growth streak in which Colombia was able to boost annual output, sometimes by double-digit percentage totals.