In brief
Colombia’s government declared restoring the 140‑mile Antonio Ricaurte gas pipeline from Venezuela a priority, seeking to address the country’s dwindling natural gas supplies. The project faces technical repairs and the need for a U.S. sanctions‑clearing license due to involvement with PDVSA. If successful, it could replace part of the country’s current LNG imports and reduce transportation costs.
Colombia’s state‑owned energy company Ecopetrol announced on 5 November that the country would push to restore the Antonio Ricaurte gas pipeline from Venezuela, a move officials say will help address the country’s plummeting natural gas supplies. The announcement, released by government officials, marks the pipeline’s designation as a “strategic national priority.”
Confirmed
According to United Press International, the Antonio Ricaurte pipeline, which has been inactive since 2015, links Venezuela’s Lake Maracaibo region with Colombia’s La Guajira department. The 140‑mile line was inaugurated in 2007 by former Presidents Álvaro Uribe and Hugo Chávez and has a designed capacity of 450 million cubic feet of gas per day, enough for roughly half of Colombia’s domestic demand. UPI notes that, in its first phase, the restored pipeline would bring about 50 million cubic feet per day—about 5 % of national consumption—into Colombia’s grid. The reactivation is expected to replace part of the country’s LNG imports, which the government said would reduce transportation costs and lower energy prices for households and businesses.
The article also reports that Colombia’s proven reserves of natural gas have fallen 46 % between 2021 and 2025, creating pressure on the domestic supply and prompting the Republic to seek alternative sources. The UPI piece states that the project has been added to Colombia’s list of Projects of National and Strategic Interest (PINES), a move intended to give the initiative institutional priority and help overcome domestic administrative hurdles.
Pending
While the government has declared the restoration a priority, United Press International notes that the project still requires extensive technical repairs and a U.S. sanctions‑clearing license because it involves Venezuela’s state‑owned oil company PDVSA. The timeline for when repairs will begin, the extent of the work needed, and the exact details of the U.S. authorization remain unconfirmed at this time.
