Venezuelan state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA, is behind schedule on a plan to start exporting natural gas to Colombia’s state-controlled energy firm Ecopetrol (ECOPETROL.BO), a top Colombian official said Thursday.
“While it’s true that Ecopetrol has a contract with PDVSA for the importation of natural gas starting in January 2012, it’s also true that the supply of gas from our neighbor country will certainly not be ready by this date,” Colombia Mines and Energy Minister Carlos Rodado said. “In recent binational meetings, they’ve informed us they need more time to meet that obligation.”
Venezuela has massive energy resources, but Colombia currently exports gas to Venezuela rather than the other way around.
Through a pipeline owned by PDVSA, Ecopetrol sends close to 200 million cubic feet per day to Venezuela. The gas comes from a field operated jointly by Ecopetrol and U.S.-based Chevron (CVX) in Colombia’s northern La Guajira region.