The Sirius offshore gas project in Colombia’s Caribbean waters, jointly owned by state-run Ecopetrol and Brazil’s Petrobras is now expected to start operating in 2031 instead of 2030 because of delays in the prior consultation process, Petrobras’ Colombia head said on Wednesday.
Petrobras had said in April that the venture had completed more than half of the 120 prior consultations required for the project, with the remainder originally expected to be completed by the end of this year.
Prior consultation is a legal process intended to protect the rights of ethnic communities by ensuring they can take part in decisions on projects that may affect their lands, culture or livelihoods.
“There are some challenges in the prior consultation process that we are overcoming. We are making great progress, but there are still one or two challenges remaining,” Petrobras Colombia head Alcindo Moritz said.
Ecopetrol owns 55.6% of Sirius, while Petrobras holds 44.4% and operates the offshore project.
Moritz said the partners aim to take a final investment decision by the end of next year, paving the way for production to begin in 2031.
Sirius is estimated to hold 6 trillion cubic feet of gas and will require about $5 billion in total investment.
The project is strategically important for Colombia, which currently imports nearly 40% of the gas it needs to meet domestic demand. Moritz said Colombia should begin planning now to expand gas transport capacity so it can handle future production from Sirius.
(Reporting by Nelson Bocanegra; Editing by Natalia Siniawski and Kylie Madry)
