Colombia’s oil production has risen almost 20% since May 2009 and is on track to meet its 2010 goals, according to Colombia’s National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH) director Armando Zamora.
Last month, Colombia produced 780,000 barrels per day (bpd) compared with 653,000 bpd in the same month in 2009, which according to Zamora sets the country on track to meet its 2010 production goal of 800,000 bpd.
According to Zamora, although Colombia is “reaching the limits of [its] infrastructural capacity with all of the petroleum that [it is] producing … We still maintain the expectation of 800,000 barrels per day [in 2010].” He added that this goal could be achieved through increased exploration.
The Colombian government has predicted that the country’s certified level of 3.1 billion barrels in proven, probable, and possible oil reserves, could rise to 6 billion over the next decade as exploration efforts continue.
According to Zamora, Colombia hopes to increase its daily production to 1.2 million within three years. Colombia’s highest level of production, 820,000 bpd, was reached in the 1990s, prior to a deterioration in the country’s oil infrastructure, caused in large part by rampant insecurity and guerrilla attacks.
Following the election of President Alvaro Uribe in 2002, security has been increased across Colombia, allowing the country to invest in its oil infrastructure, and to become an attractive destination for foreign investment.
In May, oil company British Petroleum announced that it plans to invest more than $300 million in Colombia between 2010 and 2011.