The Ballena field began gas production in 1977 and is operated by Chevron in partnership with Colombia's state oil firm Ecopetrol. The companies put into production two new wells in the area in 2012. In May 2014, a joint investment by Chevron and Ecopetrol of US$249mn was announced. The companies aim to optimize their gas operations at offshore Chuchupa, and onshore Ballena and Riohacha in order to increase gas production to 50Mf3/d by 2031. Production fell from 67.9Mf3/d in January 2014 to 59.9Mf3/d in January 2015.