Electricity transmission in Colombia: 2025 overview

This report provides a 2025 snapshot of Colombia's electricity transmission sector, highlighting a structural backlog in infrastructure that threatens the integration of expanding renewable energy generation.

• Colombia's total installed generation capacity is expected to grow from 20.9 gigawatts (GW) to 38.9 GW by 2030, as 18 GW of additional capacity has already been approved.
• The National Interconnected System (SIN) is nearing its operational limits, with available transmission capacity below 5% and 90% of substations expected to exhaust their short-circuit interrupting capacity within five years.
• Implementation is a primary challenge for the sector, with 55% of the 20 current transmission projects facing delays. Notable examples include the Bacatá-Norte project, delayed by 12 years, and the Sogamoso Norte-Nueva Esperanza project, delayed by 10 years. These delays stem from licensing difficulties, socio-environmental factors, and poor alignment between national energy and land-use planning.
• The Master Plan for Modernization and Expansion of the Electrical Transmission Infrastructure identifies 98 strategic works; completing 44 of these could resolve 149 operational constraints forecasted for 2024 through 2037.
• In 2025, the Mining and Energy Planning Unit (UPME) adopted the Territorial Engagement Model to better integrate cultural, socio-environmental, and planning criteria into the electricity sector.

APA

Sáenz, G., & Araújo, J. V. (2026). Electricity transmission in Colombia: 2025 overview. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/publications/electricity-transmission-colombia-2025-overview/

Chicago

Sáenz, Germán, and José Vega Araújo. Electricity transmission in Colombia: 2025 overview. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2026. https://www.sei.org/publications/electricity-transmission-colombia-2025-overview/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sáenz |first1=Germán |last2=Araújo |first2=José Vega |title=Electricity transmission in Colombia: 2025 overview |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=4 June 2026 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/electricity-transmission-colombia-2025-overview/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{senz2026electricity, author = {Sáenz, Germán and Araújo, José Vega}, title = {{Electricity transmission in Colombia: 2025 overview}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2026}, month = jun, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/electricity-transmission-colombia-2025-overview/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }