Cover page

I've been a subscriber of the Oil & Gas Journal for many years, which I've enjoyed most of the time, as a very serious information media.

However, in your issue of Jan. 17, 2000, the cover page, I believe, is not in alignment with the Journal's philosophy of presenting its readers with highly professional information, with the sole intention of constructing a stronger oil and gas industry.

In my opinion, this cover was on the sensationalistic side, which I do not find a good reason for it. As a consequence, the oil industry in Colombia may have suffered some damage, particularly at a time when a new bid round is being promoted and when major efforts, in this respect, are being made by the central government.

We need to keep in mind, that most of the Oil & Gas Journal readers do not read all the articles every week, but only read those which fall within a person's field of interest or responsibilities. The cover page of every single issue is something that most of us look at, and often times read about its description on the table of contents page. In this particular case, the cover is particularly attractive because it is so different from what we are used to every week.

As I said before, I feel that this cover may have been damaging to Ecopetrol's efforts to attract new investors into the country. A fair opinion on the security issue in Colombia cannot be reached, unless the whole article is read. Thus, I consider that such a cover does not make justice to a country which has been lately trying hard to overcome an extremely difficult situation.

I am sure that you are aware of the remarks by Colombia's President Pastrana when he visited Houston last October as part of the new round now being offered by Ecopetrol. He acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and openly informed the industry about the steps his government was implementing in an effort to resolve the security problems in Colombia. I feel that our community should acknowledge such genuine and honest efforts, and publications such as the Oil & Gas Journal could be instrumental in reaching those objectives.

With respect to Mr. Wade's article (OGJ, Jan. 17, 2000, p. 32) I have to admit that it is objective and well put together, giving a reasonable perspective of the current situation, in order to keep the readers informed. It may have lacked, though, a little on what the government is currently doing and what it has accomplished in the past few months on this subject. In general, I agree with Mr. Wade's comments; however, on "the quick pay-off" subject, I find it superficial. This is, of course, a subject which probably deserves an exhaustive investigation on who are the "pioneers" in first using this approach, which, as we all know, has had such devastating effects on the country.