About

The legal team of Petrobas International Braspetro Colombia is in charge of the management and administration of all legal and compliance matters that companies within the holding group face in Colombia. Led by Oscar Vela Rentería, a lawyer with substantial experience within the energy, corporate, financial and technology sectors, the small legal team has established itself as an important advisor on all long-term strategic initiatives of the company. Recent areas of praise include not only the team’s work on the design and implementation of corporate and regulatory compliance systems and procedures, but its strategic counsel and views on how to approach the process of interacting and building relationships with partners and stakeholders. The legal department has played a key role in the company’s operations, having secured all assets and obtained positive results with authorities for the first Colombian offshore discovery, and the first (and only) offshore evaluation area for exploration and production activities in Colombia. Recent measures introduced by the Colombian government to counter the effect of falling oil prices have kept the team busy, demanding an effective assertion of the company situation and analysis of the implication of these measures on the position of the company. Despite the rapid decline in oil prices, Vela believes that there has been a bigger challenge for the team. ‘The biggest challenge may have been to try and change the way legal counsel role is viewed, not to be understood just as a “lawyer role” and focused only in the legal aspects of issues, but valuing other approaches and input’, he says.