Colombia’s ELN guerrillas have freed 11 oil workers who were kidnapped in late February, the International Red Cross said on Tuesday, the latest in a flurry of security incidents that could limit growth of the country’s oil industry.
Although a decade-long US-backed crackdown on Colombia’s Marxist guerrillas paved the way for record exploration and production, security problems like hostage taking and pipeline bombings remain a top concern for oil and gas companies.
The release «was carried out at the direct request of the armed group and upon request of the families,» said Michael Kramer of Colombia’s delegation for the International Red Cross in a statement.
The contractors were snatched in the Arauca province as they travelled by bus to the Bicentennial pipeline which carries crude 600 miles (960 km) from Colombia’s central plains to its ports on the Caribbean coast.
The Red Cross did not offer further details and the nationalities of the workers was not disclosed.
buenosairesherald.com