Colombia's Oil Production at Highest Level since 1999

EIA, Today in Energy, Jul 14, 2011

                                  [Bar ?hart: Colombia's Oil Production*]

*Total oil supply, which includes the production of crude oil (including lease condensates), natural gas plant liquids, and other liquids, and refinery processing gain. -- D.R. 
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook. Download CSV Data

Colombia's oil production set a new record in May 2011, reaching an average output of 927 thousand barrels per day (bbl/d) [Colombia achieved a record-high crude oil output of 927,000 bbl/d in May 2011, up from 903,000 bbl/d in April 2011, Colombia's Energy and Mines Minister, Carlos Rodado Noriega, said. Crude oil production in Colombia in May 2011 reached 923,000 bbl/d compared with 902,000 bbl/d in April 2011 and 776,000 bbl/d in the year-ago month, i.e. May 2010, according to preliminary statistics from the Colombian hydrocarbons regulator ANH. -- D.R.]. Average annual production increased by more than 30% [sic] between 2005 and 2010. EIA expects Colombia's production to continue growing in the near future. The June 2011 Short-Term Energy Outlook projects average annual production to increase from 800 thousand bbl/d in 2010 to 910 thousand bbl/d in 2011 and 980 thousand bbl/d in 2012.

Two factors primarily contributed to Colombia's expanded production:

• Improved Security: Colombia reported only 31 attacks against pipelines in 2010 compared with hundreds of such incidents that occurred per year in the early 2000s.
• Regulatory Changes: Since 1999, the Colombian government has sought to improve the investment climate. Foreign direct investment has improved due to longer exploration licenses, lower royalty rates, and expanded opportunities for private companies to operate oil ventures.

In 2010, Colombia exported 504 thousand bbl/d of its oil production, with 365 thousand bbl/d [of crude oil and petroleum products. Also, please see my post "U.S. Crude Oil Imports from Top 15 Countries, Dec 2010 and Full Year 2010 -- EIA." -- D.R.] going to the United States [The U.S. is the largest destination for Colombia's oil exports. China was Colombia's second-largest oil export destination in 2010, followed by Japan. -- D.R.]. Imports from Colombia helped offset declines in U.S. imports from Mexico and Venezuela. EIA's recently released Country Analysis Brief for Colombia features additional analysis on these trends, along with a broad discussion of Colombia's energy sector. [Full story]

(In 2010, Colombia's crude oil production, including lease condensate, also was at its highest level since 1999. In 2010, it averaged 785,526 barrels per day. Also, please see Aaron and David Rachovich, "Top 6 Oil Producers in Central & South America, 2006-Feb. 2011 -- EIA." -- D.R.)