Companies

Antioquia Proposes to Swap its Hidroituango Shareholding for Minority Stake in EPM

Medellin Herald July 8, 2021

Antioquia Acting Governor Luis Fernando Suárez announced today (July 8) that the departmental government wants to swap its majority shareholding in the US$5 billion “Hidroituango” hydroelectric project for a minority share in Medellin’s electric-power giant EPM. The proposed deal “seeks to

Health & Insurance.

Colombia Soaring Past 20 Million Covid-19 Vaccinations; Private Companies Joining

Medellin Herald July 7, 2021

Colombia this week will surpass 20 million Covid-19 vaccinations — and seems likely to surpass its goal of 25 million by end-July, according to latest Health Ministry forecasts. Meanwhile, more than 1.25 million employees of nearly 6,000 private companies nationally this week are starting to get free Covid-19 shots thanks to massive investments by member-companies

General News

Antioquia Toll-Booth Worker Burned to Death by Colombia’s Extremist ‘Protesters’

Medellin Herald July 7, 2021

Colombia’s national infrastructure agency INVIAS announced July 6 that Antioquia highway toll-booth worker Luis Fernando Álvarez Correa has just died of massive burns suffered as a result of a terrorist “protester” attack on the “Los Llanos” highway toll booth in Antioquia last month. The 38-year-old Álvarez is just the latest of thousands of victims of […]

Companies

Update: Grupo Sura Debt Downgrade Added to That of EPM, ISA, UNE-EPM, Isagen, City of Medellin

Medellin Herald July 6, 2021

Wall Street bond rater Fitch Ratings announced July 20 that it has added Medellin-based multinational financial/insurance giant Grupo Sura and banking giant Bancolombia to a growing list of Colombian companies and municipalities suffering debt-ratings downgrades because of Colombia-wide economic problems resulting from the Covid-19 crisis. “This decision on the part

Colombian economy

Colombia’s Short-Term Debt Ratings Suffer Downgrade, but Outlook Improves to ‘Stable’

Medellin Herald July 2, 2021

Wall Street bond rater Fitch Ratings announced last night (July 1) that it has downgraded Colombia’s “Long-Term Foreign-Currency” (LTFC) and local currency “Issuer Default Ratings (IDR)” to ‘BB+’ from ‘’BBB-,’’ but Colombia’s debt outlook is now revised to “stable,” up from the prior rating of “negative.” “The [LTFC] downgrade reflects the deterioration of the

Infrastructure

‘Magdalena 2’ Connecting Medellin to ‘Ruta del Sol’ Highways Wins US$740 Million Finance

Medellin Herald June 30, 2021

Colombia’s infrastructure agency (Agencia Nacional de Infraestructura, ANI) announced today (June 30) that the “Magdalena 2” project linking Medellin northward to the “Ruta del Sol” highways just won a COP$2.8 trillion (US$740 million) loan deal organized by Colombian coordinator Financiero de Desarollo Nacional (FDN). The loan deal for ANI’s “Magdalena 2” concession

Companies

AkzoNobel Acquires Medellin’s Grupo Orbis, Pintuco Paints

Medellin Herald June 30, 2021

Netherlands-based multinational paints-and-chemicals giant AkzoNobel announced June 29 that it just inked a deal to acquire Medellin-based multinational paints, piping and hardware giant Grupo Orbis. Deal completion “is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected by end of this year or in early 2022” — but financial details have yet to be disclosed, according to

Health & Insurance.

Colombia Covid-19 Vaccinations Will Cover 35 Million People by December 2021

Medellin Herald June 30, 2021

Colombia Health Minister Fernando Ruiz announced today (June 30) that because of acceleration in Covid-19 vaccination rates, Colombia is likely to achieve its stated goal of having its 35 million most-vulnerable-people fully vaccinated by December 2021. “We see an important growth in daily vaccinations, having started with an average of less than 50,000 per day […]

Companies

Sura to Manufacture Covid-19 Vaccines by 2023

Medellin Herald June 30, 2021

Medellin-based multinational health-care and insurance giant Grupo Sura announced June 29 that it’s investing US$54 million in biotech researcher VaxThera in a project aiming to produce Covid-19 vaccines in Colombia by 2023. “VaxThera advances the development of vaccines such as Coronavirus, dengue, Chikungunya, yellow fever, influenza and Zika,” according to Sura. A new,

Health & Insurance.

Colombia Nears 17 Million Covid-19 Vaccinations; Antioquia at 2.4 Million; Medellin at 1.1 Million

Medellin Herald June 24, 2021

Colombia Health Minister Fernando Ruiz announced this morning (June 24) that Colombia has now exceeded 16 million Covid-19 vaccinations — and is averaging close to 300,000 daily, making its 17-million total-vaccinations-target by end-June likely a certainty. Of those 16 million nationwide vaccinations, 5.4 million are second shots – as required by almost all the