Colombia wants to shorten the production timeline at its biggest deepwater discovery, the nationโs energy chief said, as it braces for a shortfall of natural gas in coming years.
State-run Ecopetrol SA and Petroleo Brasileiro SA announced this month the Sirius-2 well off the Caribbean coast could triple the countryโs reserves if the deposit proves commercially viable. While drillers see first production in 2029 at the earliest, Mines and Energy Minister Andrรฉs Camacho says heโs working to bring that date forward.
โWeโre trying to advance the entrance of Sirius,โ Camacho said in a phone interview Wednesday from Barranquilla. โWhatever month, six months, or year we gain is going to be important.โ
Camachoโs ministry is working together with the environment ministry and other government agencies to make sure the social and environmental permits for the project are awarded in โoptimizedโ times, he added.
The Andean nationโs biggest companies are girding for high energy costs as dwindling production forces President Gustavo Petroโs government to turn to imports that could cost two or three times more. Up until this month, cargoes of liquefied natural gas had only been brought from abroad to meet occasional needs from power plants.
Demand for gas will outstrip domestic production by 5% next year and 17% in 2026, according to Colombiaโs commodities exchange. And while the gap is seen widening further until deepwater wells start producing, Camacho insists substantial imports wonโt be needed in the next couple of years.
Recent changes in regulation and measures taken by Ecopetrol to reduce its own usage of the fuel โguaranteeโ imports will be avoided next year, the minister said. And new deals signed between the state driller and Parex Resources Inc. for exploration in Colombiaโs Piedemonte and Magdalena regions will also help boost output enough in 2026 to avoid a shortfall, he added.
โWhat we seek is to maintain efficient and fair costs for the domestic market,โ Camacho said. โIf we have local natural gas that is much cheaper and is available, we must use it.โ
While the government is looking to avoid imports, itโs still working on making options available in case theyโre required, the minister acknowledged.
Ecopetrol has called for companies to present plans to build new regasification facilities in order to increase the nationโs LNG import capacity. Ecopetrol itself is looking to build one at its Chuchupa platform off the coast of La Guajira province in northern Colombia.