Colombia's Ecopetrol receives $ 1 bn US loan

Ecopetrol received $ 1 bn in preliminary financing from the US Export-Import Bank as Colombia's state oil producer seeks to almost double output. Ecopetrol will use the loans to buy goods and services from US businesses to develop oil and gas reserves and upgrade refineries, the Export-Import Bank said.
Oil output at Bogota-based Ecopetrol will almost double to 1 mm barrels daily by 2015 as the company drills more wells in Colombia and neighbouring South American nations. The company will boost spending by 11 % to $ 6.9 bn this year by tapping funds from banks, bonds and possible asset sales.

"Ecopetrol is being aggressive in exploration and production," said David Aldana, an analyst at Bogota-based brokerage Ultrabursatiles. "They are getting an early start on financing."
Production at Ecopetrol will rise from a 2010 forecast of 556,000 bpd. The company is the largest producer of oil in Colombia, where foreign companies will invest an additional $ 4 bn this year.

The government's fight against guerrilla troops is luring new investments in infrastructure, according to the state-run National Hydrocarbons Agency.
Total daily crude output in Colombia will climb to 850,000 barrels as early as 2012 from an estimated 800,000 this year, according to the agency. Daily production was 734,000 barrels in December.