Ecopetrol NYSE: EC executives said the group met its 2025 operational and financial goals despite a roughly 15% decline in crude prices during the year, pointing to stable production and transportation volumes, improved commercial differentials, and what management described as record efficiency gains.
CEO Ricardo Roa told investors the company delivered its second-highest net profit in history and maintained financial discipline “in challenging environments.” He highlighted a 44% triennial exploration success rate, drilling 16 wells versus a target of 10, and a reserves replacement ratio of 121%, which he said was the highest in four years.
2025 operating performance and commercial results
Roa said average production reached 745,000 barrels per day, transportation exceeded 1.1 million barrels per day, and refining throughput reached 417,000 barrels per day. He said operations and the efficiency program helped offset the impact of lower crude prices, and that the company kept an EBITDA margin “in line with expectation.”
On the commercial front, management emphasized improved crude differentials. Roa said Ecopetrol closed 2025 with a $4.6-per-barrel crude differential, an improvement of $2 versus 2024, attributing it to market diversification, basket optimization, and coordination among trading companies.
In the Q&A, executives also discussed market volatility linked to Middle East developments, noting potential impacts to crude and refined products pricing and higher freight rates. The company said it has mitigated freight exposure through actions such as fixed-rate “time charter” vessel contracts on the Coveñas-to-U.S. route and is evaluating similar options for Asia.
Reserves and exploration updates
Roa said year-end 2025 1P reserves totaled 1,944 million barrels of oil equivalent, driven primarily by organic growth. Management said 301.4 million barrels were added through enhanced recovery—described as the largest reserves incorporation in company history—plus 19 million barrels from operational optimization. The company also incorporated reserves associated with royalty securitization under Colombian regulations, a practice it said is recognized by the SEC and has been applied to gas royalties since 2014.
Hydrocarbons EVP Juan Carlos Hurtado said that of 16 wells drilled in 2025, seven were successful, five were under evaluation and four failed. Hurtado also discussed maturation of discoveries toward development, citing a potential of more than 435 million barrels of crude and highlighting commercial declarations including Orca Brazil, Lorito, Toritos, and Saltador, as well as an extension of the commercial area of the Terecay field.
On Sirius, Hurtado said the delineation stage was completed, confirming potential of 6 trillion cubic feet. He also said Colombia’s ANH approved extensions for 10 exploration and production contracts and agreements, and authorized a transfer of 50% participation and operation to Parex Resources Colombia in the Farallones E&P agreement.
Management addressed investor questions on Brazil reserves. Roa said Ecopetrol was unable to incorporate about 70 million barrels tied to the Gato do Mato asset in Brazil in the prior year due to the timing of Brazil’s regulator process, but said the company expects to incorporate those reserves “in a couple of weeks.”
Segment highlights: upstream, transportation, refining
Hurtado said 2025 production of 745,000 barrels per day was in line with the target range and comparable to 2024, supported by national crude production of 517,000 barrels per day, which he called the highest level in five years. He cited enhanced recovery, growth from Caño Sur fields, and the acquisition of a 45% stake in the CPO-9 block. He also said production was achieved with a 10% optimization versus initial planned investment and more than $139 million in drilling and completion efficiencies.
For 2026, Hurtado said the upstream organic investment plan has a “simple breakeven of $40 per barrel,” and management expects to drill 38–40 wells in the Permian-related program referenced in Q&A, with activity dependent on prices. Executives also said drilling activity in the Permian basin fell from 309 rigs/wells in 2024 to 273 in 2025, with activity moving “from four to two.”
In midstream, Hurtado said transported volumes reached about 1.1 million barrels per day through network capacity expansions and operational flexibility. He highlighted added pipeline evacuation capacity of more than 122,000 barrels per day, additional storage capacity of 323,000 barrels via new tanks in Pozos Colorados, and the commissioning of a crude import scheme from Coveñas to the Barrancabermeja refinery. The segment posted EBITDA of COP 11 trillion and net income close to COP 5 trillion, which he said were among the highest in its history.
In refining, management said 2025 results benefited from operational stability and commercial decisions that captured international differentials. Hurtado cited a fourth-quarter record integrated throughput of 133,000 barrels per day and said the gross refining margin increased 32% year over year, from $9.9 to $31 per barrel. Refining EBITDA was COP 2.7 trillion, up 20% from 2024. He also noted progress on electrical reliability in Cartagena, saying risk reduction progress reached 81% with 13 of 16 milestones completed and 70 MW of backup secured through connection to the national grid.
Energy transition, gas commercialization, and ESG
Transition Energies EVP Bayron Triana said the group marketed long-term natural gas volumes during 2025 for 2026–2029 and closed the sale of the full Ceres field gas volume with Petrobras, up to 249 GBTU, supporting entry in 2030. For 2026, he said the group signed gas sales contracts averaging 326 GBTUde, covering an estimated 76% of demand, up six percentage points versus 2025. Triana also outlined additional gas supply options, including 60 GBTUde of reclassified gas through Buenaventura for delivery in 2026 and other products to be delivered via Sociedad Portuaria Puerto Berrío beginning in December 2026.
On renewables, Triana said Ecopetrol reached nearly 951 MW of renewable capacity by the end of 2025, exceeding a 900 MW target. Operating capacity grew from 186 MW at the end of 2024 to 381 MW at the end of 2025, helped by the acquisition of Statkraft’s asset portfolio and the entry into operation of La Sira and La Iguana projects. He said the group’s solar farms and the Campayús small hydro plant avoided about 47,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent and generated about COP 55 billion in savings in 2025. He also said the 205 MW Guajira I wind farm reached its final investment decision in December 2025.
Roa highlighted ESG progress, including a reduction of 561,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent (165% of the annual target) and “Gold Standard” recognition from the United Nations for methane management. He also said the company supplied co-processed jet fuel with renewable feedstocks for more than 700 LATAM flights and reused 181 million cubic meters of water (82% of water used in operations). At the Cartagena refinery, he said Ecopetrol began installing a PEM electrolyzer expected to produce 800 tons of green hydrogen per year and avoid up to 7,700 tons of CO₂ equivalent annually.
Financial results, dividends, taxes, and 2026 outlook
CFO Camilo Barco reported 2025 EBITDA of COP 46.7 trillion with an EBITDA margin aligned with a 39% annual target. He said the E&P segment contributed about 51% of EBITDA, transportation/transmission and roads jointly contributed 43%, and refining contributed 6%.
Net income totaled COP 9 trillion. Barco attributed the decline versus 2024 mainly to market factors (including Brent falling from $80 in 2024 to $68 in 2025), inflation and peso revaluation impacts, and external disruptions including blockades, infrastructure attacks, and new taxes—effects he said reduced net income by COP 1 trillion. He said improved crude and product differentials contributed COP 2.6 trillion, and OpEx optimizations and commercial strategy contributed COP 1.3 trillion.
Liquidity ended the year with consolidated cash of COP 12.7 trillion and free cash flow of COP 11 trillion, driven in part by early collection of COP 7.7 trillion from FEPC and working-capital optimization. Barco said Ecopetrol hedged 6%–16% of monthly U.S. dollar revenue and covered 8%–20% of export volumes with price hedges in the second half of 2025.
The board will propose a dividend of COP 110 per share to the General Assembly on March 27, equivalent to 50% of net income under the company’s dividend policy. In Q&A, Barco said dividend distribution is subject to shareholder approval and noted that cash flow is influenced by accounts “crossed with those of the nation,” including FEPC and tax balances, adding that discussions with the Ministry of Treasury on FEPC payment timetables can influence the timing of dividend payments.
Barco said gross debt-to-EBITDA closed at 2.3x, below the company’s 2.5x ceiling; excluding ISA, the ratio was 1.6x. He also discussed the DIAN process related to import VAT on fuels for 2022–2024. Barco said the administrative stage has concluded for three cases totaling about COP 9.6 trillion including estimated penalties and interest, and that the company maintains its position not to record a provision based on external legal advice. He said the matter has been discussed with rating agencies and that the company has no financing covenants tied to the issue.
For 2026, management guided to an investment plan of $5.4 billion to $6.7 billion, assuming Brent at $60 per barrel and an exchange rate of COP 4,050 per dollar. The plan includes production of 730,000–740,000 boe/d, refining throughputs of 410,000–420,000 bpd, and more than 1.1 million barrels transported daily, with 380–430 development wells and up to 10 exploratory wells. The company also targets COP 5.7 trillion in efficiencies and COP 28 trillion in transfers to the nation, and aims to maintain a net income breakeven close to $47 per barrel.
About Ecopetrol NYSE: EC
Ecopetrol SA NYSE: EC is Colombia's state-controlled integrated oil and gas company and the country's largest oil producer. The company's operations span the upstream, midstream and downstream segments of the hydrocarbon value chain, including exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, refining of petroleum products, transportation and storage via pipeline networks, and the marketing and sale of fuels and petrochemical feedstocks. Ecopetrol serves domestic demand in Colombia and maintains a portfolio of international investments and partnerships across the Americas.
In upstream activities, Ecopetrol focuses on exploration and development of onshore and offshore fields to sustain and grow hydrocarbon production.
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