Chinese and European developers in the frame for Colombia's offshore wind tender
Colombia's government has moved a step closer to staging an auction
China Three Gorges, BlueFloat Energy and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) are among the companies that have entered a pre-qualification process to participate in Colombia's first ever offshore wind tender.
The pre-qualification process, which was required of developers and transport and installation contractors alike, was handled by Colombia's National Hydrocarbon Agency, an energy market regulator that has managed the licensing of oil and gas concessions offshore for over 20 years.
The companies listed as having submitted pre-qualification documents were the following:
- BlueFloat Energy, a Madrid-based offshore wind developer
- CIP, a Danish investment company focused on clean energy
- China Three Gorges Corporation, a Chinese energy developer
- Jan de Nul, a Belgian offshore contractor
- DEME Offshore, a Belgian offshore contractor
- Powerchina, a Chinese offshore contractor
- Dyna Energy, a UK renewables company
- Ecopetrol, Colombia's state-controlled oil company
- Celsia, a Colombian renewables company
Colombia's planned offshore wind tender will offer concession rights on seabed areas offering 1-3GW of wind power capacity. The offshore zones selected for inclusion are adjacent to the regional departments of Atlántico, Bolívar, Magdalena and Sucre, the ANH stated.
The list of qualified companies is slated for publication in December and the tender is scheduled for the first half of 2025.
“With this procedure we have taken the first step toward having our own offshore energy sector, which will make us a regional leader in the energy transition,” commented Colombia's Mines and Energy Minister Andrés Camacho.
Colombia has been in consultation with the World Bank over its plans to develop an internationally competitive offshore wind sector, with funding from the ESMAP-IFC Offshore Wind development programme.
The government eventually opted for two-stage process, starting with a seabed tender based entirely on qualitative, or non-price criteria.
Developers will be allowed to nominate seabed areas from within two polygon maps drawn up by the Colombian regulators, subject to limits of scale and minimum power density. Bids for these areas are due to be submitted in May 2025.
Full details of the revenue support mechanism — understood to be in the form of a Contract for Difference — and permitting arrangements, are expected before the end of the year.
ANH president Orlando Velandia described the submission of pre-qualification documents by nine companies as "a sign of investor confidence in the country and support for the Colombian energy transition".
Carolina de Mas, Advisor to the World Bank Offshore Wind Development Program, commented: “This is a really impressive demonstration of serious interest in Colombia’s first offshore wind tender from a strong and diverse field of companies. The World Bank Group is proud to have supported the government of Colombia from the outset of this process every step of the way.
"This has included mapping the technical potential to publishing the roadmap to bespoke technical and financial advisory by our team of experts. We are now fully focused on the next steps for this emerging offshore wind market to become a beacon of opportunity for the people of Colombia.”
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