General News

Antioquia’s Community Hydroelectric Projects Continue to Grow

Medellin Herald August 23, 2016

The Antioquia departmental government’s investment agency (“IDEA”) announced August 15 the initial start-up of a 15-megawatt (MW) hydroelectric dam serving Alejandria, Concepcion and Santo Domingo – small municipalities roughly 50 kilometers to the east of Medellin. The COP$120 billion (US$41

Companies

Corona: Born in Antioquia 135 Years Ago, Now a Multinational Giant

Medellin Herald August 23, 2016

Colombia-based Corona — manufacturer of porcelain products, construction goods and majority partner in the “Home Center” retail chain — on August 18 celebrated the 135th birthday of its founding in the Medellin suburb of Caldas, Antioquia. According to the company, Organizacion Corona traces its roots to 1881, originally as a ceramic dish-wear producer at a

Colombian economy

Colombia’s Free-Trade Zones See 85% Jump in Exports

Medellin Herald August 23, 2016

Colombia’s national statistics agency (Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística, DANE) announced August 22 that exports from various free-trade zones (“zonas francas”) soared 85.7% year-on-year in June 2016, boosted by favorable peso-to-dollar exchange rates. According to DANE, the June 2016 export jump is the largest recorded since 2011 (see chart,

General News

Bancolombia Now Finances More ‘4G’ Highway Projects than All Others

Medellin Herald August 1, 2016

Medellin-based banking giant Bancolombia announced August 1 that with the recent financial close of the “Autopista Conexion Norte” fourth-generation (4G) highway project, it has now taken the lead among Colombian banks in terms of the total number of “4G” projects financed. To date, Bancolombia has put-up COP$1.2 trillion (US$389 million) for a series of “4G” […]

Congresses & Conferences

Colombiamoda 2016 Exceeds Expectations, Deals Hit US$399 Million

Medellin Herald July 29, 2016

Textile and clothing trade group Inexmoda announced July 28 that the just-concluded Colombiamoda 2016 fashion-and-trade show in Medellin generated some US$399 million in new business deals, up 17% from last year’s edition. The jump in business deals is explained by a 21% year-on-year growth in national and international buyers at the trade show, according to […]

Opportunities

High-Tech ‘Startup-Expo’ Trade-Show, Investor Series Launches August 20

Medellin Herald July 26, 2016

High-tech product inventors, computer applications developers, pioneering investors and technophiles will get an opportunity to meet face-to-face August 20 in the first of a series of “Startup Expo” mini-trade-shows organized by local networking group “Aburra Valley,” which describes itself as a “Silicon Valley Paisa.” In a July 26 interview with Medellin Herald at the

Companies

PharmaCielo Buys Marijuana Farm, Nursery in Rionegro

Medellin Herald July 25, 2016

Toronto, Canada-based PharmaCielo announced July 25 that it paid US$5 million plus 1.7 million in equity shares for a 27-hectares farm and greenhouse-nursery facility in Rionegro, Antioquia, for development of a medical-marijuana cultivation and processing plant. “The 30-year-old turnkey facility houses an office building and more than 12 hectares of open-air greenhouses,

Culture

‘Silleteros’ Reveal Spectacular Gardens in Santa Elena Traditional-Flower Contest

Medellin Herald July 22, 2016

Medellin’s 59th annual Desfile de Silleteros (Flower-Carriers Parade) this year is expected to draw more than 800,000 in-person visitors — plus hundreds of thousands of TV viewers — for an event that provokes amazement, tears, elation and pride. But behind this spectacle — this year on Sunday, August 7 — are the gardens cultivated by […]

Colombian economy

Truckers, Colombia Government Settle National Strike

Medellin Herald July 22, 2016

Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos and Transport Minister Jorge Eduardo Rojas Giraldo announced July 22 that a 45-days-long national truckers’ strike – aggravated by acts of violence and vandalism against non-strikers — has finally been settled, much to the relief of freight shippers and receivers. According to the settlement agreement, the

Professional services

Interview: Ruta N a High-Tech Investment Opportunity, but don’t Call it a ‘Silicon Valley;’ Part 1

Medellin Herald July 16, 2016

Medellin’s novel “Ruta N” high-tech development center next to Universidad de Antioquia now boasts that it’s hosting some 135-odd companies from 22 countries (see  http://distritomedellin.org/hacer-parte/) that have chosen to locate inside Ruta N itself or nearby. As part of what the city government calls its “Innovation District,” the seven-year-old Ruta N not only serves