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BOGOTA, July 29 (Xinhua) -- Four pools containing a total of 2,600 barrels of crude were set on fire in eastern Colombia's Arauca department by unknown perpetrators, oil company Ecopetrol and its transportation affiliate Cenit said on Monday.
The pools, which are used to temporarily hold crude siphoned off from pipelines during repair work, have been the target of attempted sabotage at least 25 times so far this year, the companies said in a statement.
"Ecopetrol and Cenit emphatically condemn these fires, which affect the air in the region and threaten to pollute land and water reservoirs," the statement said.
The companies said they were cooperating with the authorities in investigating the acts of arson in the community of Arauquita.
