00:00Joaquín Gutiérrez is the new president of Ecopetrol, the largest and most important company
00:04of the country. Gutiérrez was the head of Abelardo de la Espriella's successful campaign and is,
00:10as publicly acknowledged by the president, one of his close friends.
00:14The Board of Directors of the Oil Company unanimously appointed Gutiérrez on the 24th.
00:18September. This Friday, Espriella swore him in and he will assume the position next.
00:22Monday, September 28th. As a business administrator, he has specializations in management.
00:27of telecommunications projects, in telecommunications law and in management
00:32of health services. He has also done business in sectors such as health, construction and livestock.
00:37Among other positions, he was an advisor in the Prosecutor's Office during the administration of Mario Iguarán.
00:41In a statement, the Ecopetrol Board acknowledged that this will be the biggest challenge in its history.
00:46Gutiérrez's professional. However, his lack of experience has been questioned by members of Congress.
00:51in the hydrocarbons sector. Ecopetrol, which produces about 60% of the oil in Colombia
00:56and transports more than 80% of the hydrocarbons, the Board of Directors chose on September 15.
01:02The new president of the Board is Carlos Suárez, who was the mastermind behind the
01:06De la Espriella's campaign. Suárez is a friend of both the president and the new leader.
01:11of Ecopetrol. The Board of Directors assured that Gutiérrez will have to drive the rebirth of
01:15Ecopetrol after the corporate governance crisis during the presidency of Ricardo Roa, who was manager
01:20of Gustavo Petro's campaign. The last few years have been complex for the oil company in terms
01:25Financials. Profits fell from 33.4 trillion pesos in 2022 to 9 trillion for
01:31the end of 2025. In the second quarter of 2026, largely thanks to the rise
01:37In the oil sector, the outlook improved, with profits of 6.1 trillion pesos, an increase of 235%.
01:44compared to the same period in 2025. More details on this story at elespectador.com.
