BOGOTA--Colombia state oil firm Ecopetrol SA (EC, ECOPETROL.BO)
said Monday that it had placed the most competitive bids for six
blocks auctioned in the U.S. Gulf Coast, part of the company's
efforts to widen its exploration efforts beyond Colombia.
Ecopetrol said in a statement that U.S. authorities will
announce the official awarding of the blocks in the coming months
after the final bids are reviewed. Ecopetrol placed the bids by
partnering with Murphy Exploration & Production and Repsol
E&P USA Inc., an affiliate of Spanish oil firm Repsol YPF SA
(REPYY, REP.MC).
The total bids were for about $40 million, with Ecopetrol's
stake at approximately $12.75 million.
Ecopetrol has moved in recent years to broaden its exploratory
efforts overseas, focusing partly in the U.S. Gulf Coast. The
Colombian company said that with the new blocks it would be present
in 122 blocks in that region through partnerships with other large
oil firms.
The company's oil production reached a record 743,000 barrels a
day in the first quarter of this year, up 8% versus the first
quarter of 2011.
Ecopetrol's shares were down 3.5% in morning trading while the
benchmark Colcap index declined 1.6%.
Write to Darcy Crowe at darcy.crowe@dowjones.com