Ecopetrol Board to Replace CEO Gutierrez

The board of directors of Colombia's state-run oil company Ecopetrol will replace the company's chief executive, Javier Gutierrez, who has held the role since 2007, but it has not yet found a successor, the company said on Friday.

Ecopetrol's shares have been on a steady slide since early 2013, losing more than half their value since then. The board said it would turn to international head-hunting firms to help in the process of seeking an executive to replace Gutierrez, who it noted had doubled the company's oil output under his watch.

Ecopetrol produces more than half of Colombia's million barrels per day domestic oil production.

Reporting by Peter Murphy