Colombian Court Reignites Gas Well Debate

A Colombian court has overturned an earlier suspension of the Sirius-2 gas well project, originally called Uchuva-2, located off the country’s Caribbean coast. The Oct. 29 decision was influenced by complaints from Indigenous communities about potential disruptions to their traditional way of life.

The industry had expressed concerns that halting the project could jeopardize Colombia’s long-term energy strategies and negatively impact its already shrinking gas reserves. Sirius-2 is a joint venture between Colombia’s state oil company Ecopetrol and Brazil’s Petrobras.

The court ordered Colombia’s interior ministry to issue an administrative law within a month to investigate the need for prior consultation with affected communities, as is mandatory for large-scale projects. Additional decisions also clarified the continued use of Indigenous names such as Uchuva and Tayrona, asserting their status as common terms of use under intellectual property law.

(With input from institutions.)