Ecopetrol Undergoes a Major Leadership Overhaul: New Appointments Signal a Strategic Shift in Colombia’s State Oil Giant

BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA — Ecopetrol, the largest and most strategically vital enterprise in Colombia, is undergoing a profound structural transformation at its highest executive levels. Following the recent arrival of its newly appointed president, Joaquín Gutiérrez Caballero, the state-backed oil conglomerate has announced a sweeping reconfiguration of its board of vice presidents.

The high-stakes reshuffle brings seasoned technocrats and corporate strategists into three pivotal leadership domains: legal affairs, corporate strategy and new business development, and administrative and supply services. These appointments mark the definitive beginning of a new corporate era for the company under the administration aligned with the broader political and administrative changes following the ascent of Abelardo de la Espriella.

The newly designated executives—Mónica Jiménez González, Mauricio Gutiérrez Dangond, and Camilo Rojas—have been formally approved by Ecopetrol’s Board of Directors, chaired by Carlos Suárez, and are mandated to assume their full duties no later than October 6.

Main Facts: The Strategic Reshuffle at the Top

The executive restructuring touches the core operational and strategic pillars of Ecopetrol, a company currently navigating complex financial landscapes, international expansion, and shifting energy paradigms. The Board of Directors greenlit three high-profile executive replacements to sweep away remnants of previous administrations and establish a cohesive leadership team capable of executing President Joaquín Gutiérrez’s corporate blueprint:

• Mónica Jiménez González returns to Ecopetrol as the Vice President of Legal Affairs and General Secretary. She replaces Cristina Toro Restrepo.
• Mauricio Gutiérrez Dangond takes the helm as the Corporate Vice President of Strategy and New Businesses, succeeding Julián Fernando Lemos Valero.
• Camilo Rojas assumes the role of Administrative and Services Vice President, overseeing contracting and supply chain operations, replacing Jaime Andrés García Cuello.

These changes are designed to fortify Ecopetrol’s governance, streamline its contracting processes, and secure its long-term financial and operational strategies amid mounting external and internal pressures.

Chronology of Events: From Presidential Transition to Executive Overhaul

The timeline leading to the current reconfiguration of Ecopetrol’s C-suite highlights a swift and calculated consolidation of power within the state-owned enterprise:

• August 2026: Following the administration change and the political transition championed by Abelardo de la Espriella, an initial wave of structural changes hits Ecopetrol’s executive ranks. Long-serving executives begin to depart.
• August 30, 2026: Julián Fernando Lemos Valero—architect of Ecopetrol’s acquisition of a 51% stake in Brava Energía in Brazil—officially steps down from his post as Corporate Vice President of Strategy and New Businesses. On the same day, Jaime Andrés García Cuello leaves his position as Administrative Vice President.
• Early September 2026: Joaquín Gutiérrez Caballero assumes the presidency of Ecopetrol. Despite his prominent background in real estate, construction, and political management (having served as the manager of Abelardo de la Espriella’s presidential campaign), Gutiérrez recognizes his relative distance from the traditional hydrocarbons sector and moves quickly to assemble a powerhouse team of sector experts.
• Late September 2026: The Board of Directors, led by Carlos Suárez, reviews and approves Gutiérrez’s proposed nominees for the three key vice presidencies.
• October 6, 2026: The definitive deadline for Mónica Jiménez, Mauricio Gutiérrez, and Camilo Rojas to officially take possession of their respective offices and begin implementing the new corporate strategy.

Supporting Data and Profiles of the Incoming Executives

The newly appointed vice presidents bring extensive, highly specialized backgrounds to Ecopetrol, aimed at stabilizing the company’s operations and steering its future growth:

1. Mónica Jiménez González: Legal Affairs and General Secretary

Mónica Jiménez is no stranger to Ecopetrol’s legal corridors, having previously held the exact same vice-presidency between 2016 and 2022 under the presidency of Felipe Bayón. Her corporate trajectory includes serving as General Counsel and Chief Strategy Officer at GeoPark, where Bayón took over as CEO in 2023. Furthermore, she served as a principal for Latin America at ICR, a strategic communications and corporate advisory firm, where she counseled boards of directors and executive teams on capital markets, strategic positioning, corporate governance, shareholder relations, and complex corporate crises. Her deep expertise spans mergers and acquisitions (M&A), hostile takeover defenses, and international commercial arbitration.

The Outgoing Executive: Jiménez steps into the shoes of Cristina Toro Restrepo, an attorney closely tied to former Medellín Mayor Daniel Quintero. Toro previously served as general secretary at EPM before transitioning to Ecopetrol’s Legal Vicepresidency and sitting on the boards of various corporate subsidiaries—appointments widely regarded as legacies of the Ricardo Roa administration and its political alliances.

2. Mauricio Gutiérrez Dangond: Strategy and New Businesses

Tasked with steering Ecopetrol’s corporate strategy and expansion initiatives, Mauricio Gutiérrez Dangond brings over 15 years of experience spanning investment banking, the oil and gas sector, and corporate finance. An alumnus of Pontificia Universidad Javeriana with a master’s degree from IE Business School and specialized training at Harvard and Stanford, Gutiérrez served as managing partner at GVC Capital of Colombia/USA, a private investment fund focused on real estate and corporate projects. His resume includes steering complex M&A transactions, company valuations, and cross-border investment agreements, alongside stints at the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic (Contraloría General) and ProColombia.

The Outgoing Executive: Gutiérrez replaces Julián Fernando Lemos Valero, an oil and gas veteran with a 17-year tenure at Ecopetrol. Lemos was the chief architect behind Ecopetrol’s high-profile, complex acquisition of a 51% majority stake in Brava Energía in Brazil, a milestone transaction finalized in August 2026 before his departure.

3. Camilo Rojas: Administrative, Services, and Contracting

Camilo Rojas takes over the crucial administrative and supply chain portfolio. A lawyer from Universidad Sergio Arboleda—the same alma mater as President De la Espriella—Rojas boasts over two decades of high-level public sector experience, state contracting, and institutional integrity management. During the administration of Juan Manuel Santos, Rojas served as acting Minister of Justice and of the Law, as well as Vice Minister of Criminal Policy and Restorative Justice. In those capacities, he spearheaded national strategies against money laundering, terrorist financing, and asset forfeiture.

Moreover, under his watch, Colombia approved its first National Criminal Policy Plan in 2021 and directed a major justice digitization project funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), adhering strictly to multilateral banking standards for procurement and accountability. He has also directed the legal and consulting firm Rojas Fiallo Consultores y Abogados Asociados. In Ecopetrol, Rojas will oversee procurement and supply operations, with an explicit mandate to enforce rigorous standards of transparency, probity, and integrity.

The Outgoing Executive: Rojas succeeds Jaime Andrés García Cuello, a civil engineer who managed the administrative vice presidency from September 2024 to August 2026. García brought broad supply chain and corporate procurement experience from major institutions, including Banco Agrario, ETB, Nestlé, Drummond, and DirecTV.

Official Responses and Stakeholder Perspectives

The wholesale renovation of Ecopetrol’s executive leadership has generated significant commentary across financial markets and political circles. While the administration frames the appointments as a necessary modernization and purification of the corporate apparatus, market analysts are closely monitoring how the incoming team will handle the company’s immense structural challenges.

President Joaquín Gutiérrez has defended the restructuring as an essential step to align Ecopetrol with his administration’s long-term vision. Given Gutiérrez’s background in project management, real estate, and political strategy rather than technical petroleum engineering, the appointment of heavyweight technocrats like Jiménez, Gutiérrez Dangond, and Rojas is viewed by insiders as an intentional balancing act—surrounding the presidency with seasoned institutional operators who understand the intricacies of energy markets, international acquisitions, and state contracting.

The Board of Directors, steered by Carlos Suárez, has expressed full confidence in the new nominees, emphasizing that integrity, rigorous legal compliance, and aggressive strategic diversification will form the cornerstone of Ecopetrol’s operational doctrine moving forward.

Implications for Ecopetrol and the Colombian Energy Sector

The timing of these executive appointments could not be more critical. Ecopetrol currently occupies a precarious position on the global stage, having recently topped international rankings as one of the most indebted petroleum companies in the world—a reality that has sounded alarm bells across domestic and foreign financial markets.

The implications of the leadership shift are manifold:

1. Navigating International Expansion: With Mauricio Gutiérrez leading Strategy and New Businesses, Ecopetrol must successfully integrate its newly acquired 51% stake in Brazil’s Brava Energía. The ability to extract value from international assets while managing a heavily leveraged balance sheet will be the ultimate test for the new strategy team.
2. Legal and Regulatory Stability: Mónica Jiménez’s return brings institutional memory and elite crisis management back to the legal vice presidency. As Ecopetrol faces evolving regulatory frameworks, domestic political pressures, and potential international litigation, having a General Counsel with deep experience in capital markets and commercial arbitration is a vital defensive asset.
3. Ethical Procurement and Contracting: Under Camilo Rojas, the administrative and contracting division faces intense scrutiny. By emphasizing multilateral procurement standards, anti-money laundering frameworks, and strict corporate integrity, Ecopetrol aims to insulate its massive supply chain operations from political patronage and corruption scandals.
4. A Test of Leadership Cohesion: As President Joaquín Gutiérrez relies on these three newly minted vice presidents to steady the ship, the success of Colombia’s crown jewel will depend on whether this revitalized leadership team can simultaneously reassure anxious investors, manage a towering debt burden, and chart a sustainable energy future in a rapidly changing global economy.