The Energy Transition In Colombia: 100 Years Of The Oil Industry And Perspectives Towards A Geothermal Future.

Abstract

The oil and gas sector has marked institutional and business milestones in the history of Colombia. It has allowed the country to consolidate a leading and competitive industry that furthers the country’s economic and social development, contributing significant resources to the development of regions and in the well-being of the communities. Crude was first discovered in 1918 in the La Cira-Infantas field (Barrancabermeja), which set the course of oil and gas industry in Colombia. In 2018, this industry celebrated 100 years of existence in the country. These 100 years of consolidated experience, with technological, social and environmental successes and lessons learned, may play a key role in the transition towards sustainable use of other types of the subsurface energy such as geothermal. In Colombia, the geothermal resources are located in both sedimentary basins and magmatic areas, however its energy has been limited to direct uses by local communities. Future perspectives and visions on how the petroleum and geothermal industries can work together, allows to believe in new opportunities to make geothermal energy profitable, from subsurface uncertainties to viable business models in both electricity generation and direct use applications. In this presentation, a brief overview of the geology of Colombia and its history in the oil and gas industry is shown, while also highlights the country as a world-class geothermal destination with a great potential to be developed, but also with challenges to face to make geothermal energy production a reality.

AAPG Datapages/Search and Discovery Article #90346 ©2019 AAPG European Region, 3rd Hydrocarbon Geothermal Cross Over Technology Workshop, Geneva, Switzerland, April 9-10, 2019