De la Espriella Reverses Colombia's Oil Moratorium, Targets 1.3 Million bpd

De la Espriella Reverses Colombia's Oil Moratorium, Targets 1.3 Million bpd

The president-elect set a target of 1.3 million barrels per day and is preparing new contracting rounds to reverse the country's energy deficit.

Abelardo De la Espriella, Colombia's president-elect, will reverse the moratorium on new hydrocarbon exploration contracts when he takes office on August 7, 2026. De la Espriella, who won the June 21 runoff by one percentage point, according to AP, set a target of 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd), nearly double the current 700,000 bpd, Bloomberg Línea reported.

Colombia is Latin America's third-largest oil producer and the region's top coal exporter. Under the previous administration, new exploration contracts were suspended and hydrocarbon development was restricted in strategic zones. Crude output, hovering around 700,000 bpd, has fallen 18% from its 2015 peak, according to Enerdata. At the same time, domestic natural gas production, with proven reserves of 67 billion cubic meters (bcm), stopped meeting internal demand, forcing the country to import 2.2 bcm of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2024. The energy deficit became one of the defining issues of the presidential campaign.

De la Espriella outlined a full reversal of energy policy. His plan includes the immediate reactivation of state-owned Ecopetrol and the signing of new exploration and production contracts. On fracking, he authorized limited pilot projects subject to five environmental conditions: exclusion of páramos and protected areas, an independent baseline study, real-time public monitoring, suspension upon proven harm, and prior consultation with communities, Infobae reported. On natural gas, the plan prioritizes strengthening regasification infrastructure to reduce dependence on spot imports. On coal, he proposes cutting sector taxes to recover export competitiveness, according to Enerdata. He also announced a new firm electricity supply auction open to all technologies, and committed to a stable regulatory framework to attract investment.

Colombia's shift reshapes the regional energy map. Colombia ceases to be the natural ally of hydrocarbon-containment positions in forums such as the Latin American Energy Organization (OLADE). The first contracting rounds and the electricity auction, scheduled for the second half of 2026, will be the concrete signals of the new direction.

This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.