Colombia’s Ecopetrol in regas move

Ecopetrol said in a statement on Tuesday it has awarded and signed the first regasification services contract with PIO SAS (Puertos, Inversiones y Obras).

According to the firm, this new regasification alternative on the Colombian Pacific coast will provide new sources of supply to meet the demand for gas in Colombia, prior to the launch of offshore projects.

The infrastructure will have a regasification capacity of 60 million cubic feet per day.

Ecopetrol expects the infrastructure to start operations in the second quarter of 2026, offering receipt and storage services in Buenaventura and regasification in Buga, Valle del Cauca.

“In this way, the Ecopetrol group is moving forward in actions that contribute to the natural gas supply for more than 40 million Colombians,” the firm said.

The firm did not provide further information.

Ecopetrol’s management said during the company’s quarterly earnings call in November 2024 that it was evaluating a regasification project at the Chuchupa offshore field.

The company said at the time it was working on pre-conceptual design, the permits needed to develop this facility, and the licenses.

Besides this move, last year, US-based engineer Black & Veatch completed a feasibility study for the planned Andes Energy LNG-to-power project in Colombia.

The Andes Energy Terminal (AET) would be located in the Aguadulce Peninsula in Buenaventura.

Last year, Colombia’s only FSRU-based LNG import facility in Cartagena completed its 100th ship-to-ship transfer since 2016, according to SPEC LNG.

SPEC LNG operates the FSRU-based terminal in which Colombian gas distributor Promigas has a 51 percent stake while Dutch Vopak holds the rest.

Hoegh Evi’s 170,000-cbm FSRU, Hoegh Grace, serves the facility and mainly receives LNG supplies from the US and Trinidad and Tobago.