Ecopetrol sees first-quarter profit up to 3 trillion pesos, output steady

Ecopetrol said first-quarter net profit likely reached between 2 trillion and 3 trillion pesos, or about $563 million to $845 million, a sign that Colombia’s state oil champion started 2026 with enough scale and cash generation to keep the government funded even as pressure builds to move away from fossil fuels.

The company also guided first-quarter revenue to 27 trillion to 30 trillion pesos and production to 715,000 to 730,000 barrels per day, keeping output near the middle of its usual range. That matters well beyond the company’s own balance sheet. Ecopetrol remains one of Colombia’s main sources of export earnings, dividends and fiscal support, so even a quarterly update doubles as a reading on the country’s budget strength and energy dependence.

Ecopetrol’s investor site showed quarterly results materials for 2026 posted on April 22, underscoring that the company was already signaling its operating direction before releasing a full earnings breakdown. The guidance arrived against a backdrop of volatile crude prices and heavy capital demands, with management earlier approving a 2026 investment plan of 22 trillion to 27 trillion pesos. The company said that plan was designed to sustain production, safeguard cash and protect debt and profitability metrics even with Brent crude around $60 a barrel and the peso near 4,050 per dollar.

The 2026 operating target of about 730,000 to 740,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day suggested the first-quarter production range was broadly in line with full-year ambitions. That steadiness is crucial for Bogotá, where Ecopetrol’s cash flow helps determine dividend payments and public revenue at a moment when the government has promised an energy transition but still relies heavily on oil income.

The latest guidance came after a difficult 2025, when Ecopetrol reported net income of 9.0 trillion pesos on revenue of 119.7 trillion pesos. Production reached 745,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, the highest in five years, but net income still fell 39.5% from 14.9 trillion pesos in 2024 as lower Brent prices and unfavorable exchange-rate moves squeezed returns. In the second quarter of 2025, the company earned 1.81 trillion pesos; for the first half, net profit reached 4.93 trillion pesos.

At its shareholders’ meeting in Bogotá on March 27, 2026, Ecopetrol approved an ordinary dividend of 121 pesos per share, totaling about 4.9 trillion pesos, with roughly 4.4 trillion pesos expected to go to the Colombian government as majority owner. That payout illustrates the central tension facing the company now: strong earnings can steady the state in the short term, but they also deepen Colombia’s reliance on oil just as policymakers seek a less carbon-heavy future.