Corporate Social Responsibility- Methodologies, Performance and Management in Oil and Gas Industry: Case of a leading E&P Company in Colombia, South America

a. Our firm owns interests in 11 fields across Colombia's Middle Magdalena basin, through association contracts with Colombia's state oil company Ecopetrol. Velasquez oil field is located in central Colombia about 160 km far away from the capital Bogota. Discovered in 1946, the Velasquez oilfield has an area of 32 km2 and was put into production from 1947. The Valley with 45,000 sq. km has 33 municipalities, 91 rivers and approximately 1,200,000 inhabitants who make this region a potential for alternative projects that will generate social development with equity and allow improved quality of life in this prosperous region. MECL defines CSR as “The commitment assumed for the contribution to the development, welfare and improving the quality of life for employees, their families and the community at large”. Under this commitment, the company avoids any negative impact of its operations over people and its surrounding area. The management is a five stage process: Diagnostics, programs and project planning, execution, tracking and monitoring and evaluation of results. The general objective of MECL is contribute to the economic development of the population in the vicinity of Velasquez through the articulation and enforcement of contracts and agreements between private companies, state and community efforts to articulate economic, operational and sustainability to find the social, community, business and environment. Promoting social and territorial development through investment in education, health, environment using basic mechanisms of institutional cooperation, management and community participation, establishing new revenue-generating alternatives to low-income are some of our specific objectives. Our activities include literacy programs, drug prevention workshops, cultural projects, business development training, sexual health workshops, sports, education workshops for school community (parents, teachers and students), provision of school kits to students, preventive medicine health training etc. MECL invested 1.74 million USD to fulfil its responsibilities during the year 2011.