Production hit an average of 96 percent of the target for January and February, while it reached 99 percent in March, the ministry said in a statement.
Technical problems and a natural decline in production at fields operated by about a dozen private and state-owned companies were responsible for the failure to achieve the full production targets, the ministry said.
The Non-Renewable Natural Resources Ministry asked the companies last month to explain why they failed to meet production targets and to lay out measures to deal with the problems.
Some private companies claimed technical problems, operational problems and rusted pipes, among other problems, all common in the industry, were behind the failure to meet production goals.
State-owned companies, for their part, blamed operating problems, such as power outages, for the failure to hit output targets.
Both private and public companies told the ministry that the problems had been solved.
Natural decline was also a problem in the January-March period, since many “mature fields” have been producing oil for more than 30 years, the ministry said.
Private and public oil companies invested $188 million in their operations during the first quarter of this year, the Non-Renewable Natural Resources Ministry said.
Ecuadorian oil officials expect production to increase in the second quarter, the ministry said.
Oil is Ecuador’s main export product and revenues from its sale finance about 25 percent of government spending.
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