Solar, wind power and energy communities in Colombia: 2025 policy overview

Colombia saw a significant increase in solar and wind capacity to approximately 9% of its electricity matrix in 2024, driven primarily by solar expansion. While the government aims to establish 20,000 energy communities by 2026 and has approved substantial future capacity (13.5 GW solar and 2.8 GW wind for 2023-2033), the sector faced a nearly 70% drop in investment between 2022 and 2023. The transition is further complicated by the suspension of several major wind projects and the need for approximately USD 92.4 billion to meet long-term National Energy Plan targets.

• Solar and wind capacity in Colombia grew from 1.5% of the total electricity matrix in 2022 to around 9% in 2024, a growth attributed specifically to solar capacity expansion.
• The Mining and Energy Planning Unit (UPME) has approved 13.5 GW of solar and 2.8 GW of wind projects for commissioning between 2023 and 2033. As of December 2024, 32 solar projects (5,022 MW) and 9 wind projects (1,571 MW) were under construction.
• The Colombian government's National Development Plan 2022–2026 identifies energy communities as a central element for energy democratization, with a target of creating 20,000 such communities by 2026.
• Investment in Colombia's renewable energy sector declined by nearly 70% between 2022 and 2023, falling from USD 1.2 billion to approximately USD 410.2 million. This was caused by high capital costs, changes in tax incentives, and pressure to lower electricity prices.
• Meeting the solar and wind capacity goals of the National Energy Plan (PEN) 2022–2052 is estimated to require an investment of up to USD 92.4 billion.
• Wind energy development faces significant setbacks, with nearly 1.3 GW of projects discarded. Specific suspended projects led by Enel Colombia include Windpeshi (205 MW), Tumawind (208 MW), and Chemesky (99 MW), while EDP Renewables cancelled the Alpha (212 MW) and Beta (280 MW) projects.
• The distribution of benefits from renewable energy projects is mandated through electricity sector transfers. For new plants in high-resource areas, these transfers will gradually increase from 1% to 6% of gross energy sales, with 60% going to ethnic communities and 40% to municipalities if such communities are present.

APA

Vega-Araújo, J., Cabré, M. M., & Gil, M. P. (2025). Solar, wind power and energy communities in Colombia: 2025 policy overview. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/wind-solar-energy-colombia-2025-sei2025-046.pdf

Chicago

Vega-Araújo, José, Miquel Muñoz Cabré, and María Paula Gil. Solar, wind power and energy communities in Colombia: 2025 policy overview. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2025. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/wind-solar-energy-colombia-2025-sei2025-046.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Vega-Araújo |first1=José |last2=Cabré |first2=Miquel Muñoz |last3=Gil |first3=María Paula |title=Solar, wind power and energy communities in Colombia: 2025 policy overview |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=October 2025 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/wind-solar-energy-colombia-2025-sei2025-046.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{vegaarajo2025solar, author = {Vega-Araújo, José and Cabré, Miquel Muñoz and Gil, María Paula}, title = {{Solar, wind power and energy communities in Colombia: 2025 policy overview}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2025}, month = oct, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/wind-solar-energy-colombia-2025-sei2025-046.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }