President Petro stopped hydrocarbon exploration contracts in Colombia to favor renewable sources such as solar and wind energy
It is the largest natural gas discovery since the 1990s and comes at a crucial time for Colombia. The government of Gustavo Petro has just launched a plan to seek investments of 40 billion dollars to finance the country’s energy transition.
The discovery was made by the Brazilian Petrobras, in the Colombian Caribbean, together with the Colombian state-owned Ecopetrol. The size of the offshore reservoir is comparable to that of the Cuchupa Field in Ríohacha (north), which has supplied gas to the country for the last 45 years.
This new place has reserves of six cubic terapies of gas, it is the largest discovery since the 1990s. “It has the potential to double Colombia’s reserves,” reported Rogerio Soares, general manager of exploratory assets of the Brazilian oil company, during an event. in Cartagena (north).
“There is talk of six cubic terapies, which makes it a reserve, probably twice as large as what there is in the rest of the deposits in Colombia. And it starts to have a leading role in a country that needs gas,” Ricardo Cuervo, president of the consulting firm Latina Energy, told RFI.
The lack of gas has forced Colombia to import gas. “They have an offshore compression plant that receives imported gas. But that imported gas is much more expensive than the gas produced in Colombia and it is expected that gas can eventually be brought from Venezuela to Colombia,” Cuervo explained.
The discovery was made in the Sirius well, which, according to experts, has the potential to double Colombia’s reserves. “Many times it is said between five and seven years to have the gas particle on the surface. Perhaps in this case there have been discussions by Ecopetrol where they talk about accelerating this process to reduce it to two and a half or three years. “It would not solve the immediate problem, but it is part of the planning that is required to cover that energy security.”
The announcement comes after the government launched a plan to seek investments of $40 billion to finance the country’s energy transition. President Petro stopped hydrocarbon exploration contracts to favor renewable sources such as solar and wind energy. But the opposition and a sector of the industry consider that this decision could put the country’s energy self-sufficiency at risk.
According to figures from Naturgas, the national union of gas companies, in 2025 Colombia will have a deficit of this hydrocarbon equivalent to 7.5% of total demand and in 2026 it will increase to 16%.
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