Big companies abandon Colombia wind energy program amid regulatory shifts, social problems and grid gaps
Bogota, Colombia – Colombia’s ambitious wind energy development program, especially in the resource-rich La Guajira area, faces serious setbacks with the claims of major companies withdrawing and project booths.
Margarita Nieves, director of the Columbia Offshore Wind Research Network, told the Associated Press that despite the large target, including the 1.1 GW granted at the 2019 auction, only two wind farms are operating partially today, with a total capacity of less than 32 MW.
Colombia’s mining and energy planning department estimates that the country can generate up to 18 GW of wind power, almost twice the power capacity of 20 GW that the United States currently installs.
Before obtaining the license, several companies brought equipment and infrastructure to Colombia around 2021, but the park is still not established. Key barriers include La Guajira’s limited grid-connected infrastructure, recent regulatory changes have reduced financial returns and complex social and leadership challenges.
Colombia, the third most populous country in Latin America, has committed to reaching zero emissions by 2050. President Gustavo Petro is the country’s first leftist leader, who regards himself as an environmentalist and advocate for the just energy transition. However, Colombia remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels – oil is its highest export and a major source of government revenue.
In 2023, Italian multinational Enel withdraws from La Guajira’s Windpeshi onshore wind energy project. By the second half of 2024, EDP Renewables canceled two major projects, Alpha and Beta, two large onshore wind farms in the same area. In May, Colombian state-owned oil company Ecopetrol acquired nine solar and wind projects from Norway’s Statkraft, marking the exit of European companies from the country. The portfolio covers La Guajira, Sucre, Cordoba, Caldas and Magdalena with a potential capacity of 1.3 GW. There is only one project currently in operation, while others are expected to be launched between 2026 and 2027.
The move is part of Ecopetrol’s broader energy transition strategy to reduce dependence on oil and gas and to target zero by 2050. However, challenges such as regulatory delays, governance issues, and the potential impact on Colombia’s fiscal stability have raised questions about the speed of transition and the economic impact.
Nieves warned that the situation is “very worrying”, with only two of the more than 20 planned projects in progress. She stressed the need to speed up the regulatory process, improve consultations with indigenous communities, especially La Guajira’s Wayuu and ensure adequate electrical infrastructure.
Delays also threaten Colombia’s maritime ambitions
“Colombia’s wind energy has been delayed by more than 20 years,” Nevis said. “Brazil, by contrast, has built more than 1,300 onshore wind farms over the past two decades and is the world’s highest turbine producer.”
The wind energy project is part of Colombia’s just energy transition, aiming to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy while supporting vulnerable groups such as indigenous peoples. The region is home to Cerrejon, one of the world’s largest open pit coal mines, and is also a major player in the mining sector in Latin America, which has been operating since 1985. The region has only nine years of life left, and its lifespan is only nine years, and there are no other alternatives to plan, which will deal a major blow to the region’s economy.
Boycotting Indigenous Community Projects
For Samuel Lanao, head of the La Guajira Environmental Management Bureau, the main reason several licensed renewable energy projects were sold was because the company encountered deep-rooted social tensions, especially during previous consultations with local indigenous communities. Lana said there has been a confrontation between businesses and residents, which derails expectations for development.
“This is a major blow to La Guajira, as there is high hopes for economic and social progress through these projects,” he said.
The Wayuu people are a bionic native group of northern Colombia and Venezuela’s arid La Guajira region, and still have differences in wind energy development. While some welcome the financial support provided by companies to build turbines on their ancestral lands, many others raised concerns about environmental and cultural impacts, as well as the lack of meaningful prior consultation, one of the poorest areas in Colombia.
Diego Patron, manager of Jemeiwaa Ka’i Wind Project, a large wind farm cluster in La Guajira, acknowledged the pioneering nature of early wind energy in Colombia, and the effort began with a regulatory vacuum without a clear institutional framework.
“These foundation projects face a steep institutional and territorial learning curve that leads to losses in key strategic projects,” Patron said. “But their legacy now forms the cornerstone of the new plan.”
The patron believes that the barriers to legal Wayuu community representatives, environmental permits and contract resolutions have been overcome, thus creating more stable conditions. ”
The customer said the misinformation has exacerbated tensions, and his aim to support the community is to support the community.
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