Adaptation to climate change: assuming a new reality

Establishing new action plans, which involve the importance of water resource management, ecosystem conservation and biodiversity, as well as the resilience of the infrastructure of the oil and gas industry, are some of the actions that companies in Colombia are leading.

Climate risks have become the basis for companies to define adaptation actions, in line with the transformation of their corporate governance and operations. Part of this premise has led them to establish new action plans, which involve the importance of water resource management, ecosystem and biodiversity conservation, and infrastructure resilience.

For example, Ecopetrol developed the vulnerability analysis for variability and climate change scenarios, which has allowed it to identify actions to increase the adaptation capacity of the company's operations and infrastructure in the face of extreme climate phenomena.

This has allowed it to focus its investments on better water and biodiversity management, the protection of strategic watersheds, the implementation of conservation agreements for the protection of forests and their biodiversity, and the consolidation of natural climate solutions that contribute to the mitigation of Greenhouse Gases (GHG).

The state-owned company explains that it established the Water Neutrality Roadmap by 2045, which includes reducing 66 percent of fresh water intake for industrial use, compared to the baseline (year 2019), zero industrial discharges into fresh water bodies, and compensation for the remaining intake (34 percent) through compensation projects in the same watersheds from which the water is extracted.

For its part, private operators also work to ensure that water resources are a universal right. In the case of Parex Resources, through its ‘Water for All’ program, it seeks to support adaptation to climate change with efficient water management that allows access for all Colombians. As it increases its investments to ensure that the communities of influence have access to clean energy, it has set a short-term goal: to eliminate regular gas flaring by the end of 2025, thus contributing to the World Bank's initiative to eliminate gas flaring emissions by 2030.

Climate risks have become the basis for companies to define adaptation actions, in line with the transformation of their corporate governance and operations.

Frontera Energy highlights that it sees a greener and cleaner future, with operations that adapt to the new realities of the industry. For the company, which has participation in 27 exploration and production blocks in Colombia, Ecuador, and Guyana, caring for water is imperative. Therefore, it works to reduce water resource consumption in its operation by at least 15 percent. In fact, in 2022 alone, it achieved a 25 percent reduction.

“Our dedication to harmonizing business objectives with environmental, social, and corporate governance goals demonstrates our belief that responsible management and solid performance are not only complementary but mutually reinforcing,” explains Orlando Cabrales, CEO of Frontera Energy.

Today, the oil company has a responsible consumption program that aims to reuse at least 17 percent of the solid waste sent for final disposal. This is part of its new ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) strategy, in which it defined that sustainability commitments are not a support but are at the center of the operation.

Another example is Hocol, a company that has understood that adaptation starts from the contribution it generates to the communities of influence. Beyond the investments it has been making to transform its operations in the field, it is also advancing in the creation of energy communities that generate their own energy to meet their needs. This is the case of the corregimiento of Canutal in the municipality of Ovejas, Sucre, where the company invested in a water treatment plant powered by photovoltaic energy. “In the future, we hope that this community generates not only the energy it requires but also produces energy surpluses that Hocol can acquire to boost its operations in the area. Additionally, we are structuring projects to attract external resources, such as the tax works mechanism and other investments, so that the community can access additional sources of sustainable energy,” the company emphasizes.

Likewise, GeoPark believes that adaptation is based on leveraging new technologies to improve its operations and its relationship with communities. Therefore, since July of last year, it achieved the connection of Llanos 34, one of its main assets and one of the blocks with the highest contribution to oil production in Colombia, to the National Interconnected System (SIN). This project guarantees a supply of over 50MW of energy, 70 percent from renewable sources, which replaces electricity generated from the use of fossil fuels.

The commissioning of the first solar farm in Llanos 34 —during the last quarter of 2022— is a milestone for the company and a demonstration that it is working to adapt to the new realities of the industry. This is because it is a complex that provides energy with zero emissions to that block, which shows that it is advancing with a clear strategy that will allow it to be more efficient and sustainable in the medium term.

Similarly, Chevron is advancing its Energy Reefs program, an initiative for coral protection. In 2022, it achieved the construction of a pilot station for the ex situ cultivation of corals on the island of Providencia and Santa Catalina. With this installation, the cultivation and maintenance of Caribbean coral species have been promoted, which are then transplanted to the natural reef.