Companies

ISA, Nutresa Win Positive Bond Ratings from Fitch

Medellin Herald May 31, 2016

Medellin-based electric power transmission giant ISA and Medellin-based multinational foods producer Grupo Nutresa both recently won debt-ratings upgrades from Wall Street bond rater Fitch Ratings. According to Fitch, ISA’s “issuer default ratings” (IDRs) have been boosted to “BBB+,” instead of

Companies

ISA 1Q 2016 Net Income Jumps 31% Year-on-Year

Medellin Herald May 3, 2016

Medellin-based ISA – operator of Colombia’s national electric power transmission network – announced May 2 that its first quarter (1Q) 2016 net income rose 31.3% year-on-year (y-o-y), to COP$192 billion (US$65 million). Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) hit COP$779 billion (US$229 million) in 1Q 2016 — with a 50.5% EBITDA margin,

Companies

Medellin-based Exito, Environment Ministry, WWF Promote Reusable Grocery Bags

Medellin Herald May 2, 2016

In a new campaign aiming to slash water and land pollution caused by reckless disposal of plastic grocery bags, Medellin-based retail giant Exito is teaming-up with Colombia’s Environment Ministry and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to promote broader adoption of reusable grocery bags. Launching of the national “ReemBOLSA” campaign – attended by officials at an […]

Companies

Medellin’s Grupo Nutresa Sees 1Q 2016 Sales Soar; EBITDA Sets Record

Medellin Herald May 2, 2016

Medellin-based multinational food producer Grupo Nutresa announced April 29 that its first quarter (1Q) 2016 sales jumped 21.9% year-on-year (y-o-y), to COP$2.1 trillion (US$738 million). Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) hit COP$281 billion (US$98.7 million), up 19.6% y-o-y. Colombian organic sales growth rose 9.2% y-o-y thanks to a

Companies

Antioquia’s Legal Gold Miners Expanding, Getting Help from Colombian Police

Medellin Herald April 26, 2016

The multi-billion-dollar business of gold mining in Antioquia has suffered enormously from decades of violence, land invasions, murders, extortions, environmental destruction, illegal and “informal” mining, as well as the intromission of guerrilla and “paramilitary” groups. But some hopeful signs are starting to emerge as Colombia’s National Police announced April 25 their

Companies

ISA Offsets 100% of Greenhouse Gases with Antioquia Reforestation Project

Medellin Herald April 25, 2016

Medellin-based power transmission giant ISA announced April 14 that it managed to offset 100% of its total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions via a reforestation project in Bajo Cauca, Antioquia. The company won a “Carbon Neutral Certificate” from Switzerland-based GHG emissions-credit trader and environmental consultant South Pole Group. ISA and its InterColombia power

Companies

JP Morgan, Endeavor Colombia, Corporacion Las Mercedes Team-up on IT Development

Medellin Herald April 25, 2016

U.S.-based JP Morgan Chase Foundation, entrepreneurship developer Endeavor Colombia and Colombia-based educational institute Corporation Las Mercedes jointly announced April 21 that they’re teaming-up on a new program that will train 130 local information technology (IT) programmers and software developers.  “The three non-profit organizations share a mission to

Colombian economy

Foreign Direct Investment Grows in ‘Other’ Sectors as Petroleum, Mining Decline: Banco de la Republica

Medellin Herald April 19, 2016

The latest quarterly report from Colombia’s currency regulator (Banco de la Republica) shows that foreign direct investment (FDI) in petroleum and mining in Colombia during first quarter (1Q) 2016 dropped sharply year-on-year (y-o-y), to US$1.2 billion, from US$3 billion in 1Q 2015. However, FDI in “other” sectors (outside of petroleum and mining) rose sharply y-o-y, to

Companies

Argos to Get Bogota’s Used Tires for Antioquia Cement-Plant Combustion Fuel

Medellin Herald April 13, 2016

Medellin-based multinational Grupo Argos announced April 11 that it just signed a deal with Bogotá Mayor Enrique Peñalosa to receive all 2.5 million of Bogotá’s used tires — which will be used as combustion fuel for the Cementos Argos cement plant at Rioclaro, Antioquia. “Cementos Argos uses this [tire combustion] technique in its three cement […]

Colombian economy

Colombia High-Tech Services Ranking Jumps for Foreign Investors: ProColombia

Medellin Herald April 13, 2016

ProColombia – the national government agency promoting foreign trade – announced April 12 that Colombia rose to fifth place in the latest ranking of all 55 nations in the Americas in information technology (IT), software and business process outsourcing (BPO). Citing the latest AT Kearney Global Services Location Index report, “Colombia was the country that