{
  "id": 7614400,
  "title": "Colombia: Promigás Warns Gas Deficit Is Now Structural",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/15/colombia-promigas-warns-gas-deficit-is-now-structural",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-15T19:27:29.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Rio Times",
    "slug": "the-rio-times",
    "url": "https://www.riotimesonline.com/colombia-promigas-warns-gas-deficit-is-now-structural/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Colombia’s gas pipeline operator Promigás has declared the country’s energy deficit is no longer a temporary issue, but a structural one. In a recent report, the company shifted its language from a “cyclical” deficit to a “structural” one. This shift indicates the gravity of the problem facing the next government.\n\nNational gas production decreased by 12% in 2025 compared to the previous year, and by 31% compared to 2021, resulting in Colombia now producing about a third less gas than four years ago. The country’s proven gas reserves have also plummeted from 3.16 trillion cubic feet in 2021 to 1.72 trillion cubic feet by the end of 2025, a nearly half reduction over five years. Reserves measure the number of years of supply Colombia has left at current extraction rates.\n\nTo compensate for the shortfall, Colombia has relied heavily on imported liquefied gas, which increased from 5 million cubic feet per day in 2021 to 174 million in 2025. In August 2026, imports accounted for 34% of the country’s total gas supply, up from virtually nothing in 2021. An expansion of import infrastructure planned for September 2027 has now been accelerated to October 2026.\n\nHigher import-linked prices appear to be reducing consumption. Non-thermal gas demand fell by 7% between January and August 2026, while industrial gas demand contracted by 23% over the same period. Promigás president Juan Manuel Rojas warned that a single unexpected drop at a gas field could now impact entire market segments.\n\nThe company outlined five priorities for policymakers: securing and diversifying imports, reviving domestic production, expanding transport capacity, restoring regulatory stability, and protecting vulnerable households and industries with targeted subsidies. Rojas emphasized the need to secure imports now and rebuild domestic supply for the future at the same time.\n\nThis is not the first warning about Colombia’s gas situation. Industry group Andesco had already raised concerns in January about a potential monthly deficit of 39% in 2026 and 58% in 2027. The report suggests these warnings are now becoming reality, with the country crossing real thresholds in gas supply this year, not just theoretical risk models.\n\nThe term “structural” gas deficit implies that the reserve base is insufficient to meet Colombia’s current demand without permanent, large-scale imports. Colombia currently prices much of its regulated gas off a formula tied to imported costs, leaving household and business gas bills more exposed to global price fluctuations. Industrial users, already down 23% in consumption this year, face a similar exposure as they compete for a shrinking pool of import-heavy gas.",
  "summary": "Key Facts — What happened. Promigás, Colombia’s largest gas transporter, says the country’s natural-gas shortfall has stopped being temporary and is now structural. — How big. National gas production fell 12% in 2025 alone, and 31% cumulatively since 2021. — What it means. Imported, regasified gas covered 34% of Colombia’s total supply in August 2026, […] The post Colombia: Promigás Warns Gas…",
  "key_points": [
    "Promigás declares Colombia's gas deficit is now structural, not cyclical",
    "National gas production decreased by 12% in 2025, 31% since 2021",
    "Imports accounted for 34% of gas supply in August 2026, up from virtually nothing in 2021"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}