LPG in Colombia

LPG in Colombia is widely used for cooking today, and this segment will grow in the coming years. The most widely discussed topic at the Congress was the economic and health benefits of replacing primitive hearths using firewood with gas stoves. Biomass burning is today recognized by the Colombian government as a serious environmental problem, contributing to deforestation, loss of unique natural resources and deteriorating health of women and children in indigenous areas. The government estimates that by 2050 all traditional hearths will be eliminated and replaced by LPG (42%), natural gas (29%), biogas (10%) and electric cookstoves (19%). 

In past years, autogas was not a serious alternative to transportable liquid fuels in Colombia, primarily because of subsidies supporting the production and consumption of gasoline and diesel. However, the situation changed when Gustavo Petro, a leftist candidate and European-educated former mayor of Bogotá, took office as president of the republic. As part of his fiscal stabilization, the president announced he would abandon support for hydrocarbon consumption and direct public funds to the development of renewable energy sources. Fuel consumption subsidies were the largest component of fossil fuel subsidies, estimated as recently as 2021 at COP1.8 trillion (1 zloty is about 1,000peso). As a result, from the fall of 2022 to today, the price of gasoline at the pump has nearly doubled to about COP4,100/l and continues to rise.

The president's policy has sparked dissatisfaction among consumers, who have begun looking for alternatives to liquid fuels since 2023. In 2023. 23,000 vehicles were converted to CNG, corresponding to a 63% increase from the previous year. However, this is only the beginning of an expected shift away from liquid fuels - there are 7 million registered cars in Colombia's 50 million population, of which about 130,000 currently use CNG, a locally sourced fuel. The largest market for passenger cars is Bogotá, the country's capital of 8 million, which lies in the Andes Mountains, 2,600 meters above sea level, in rugged terrain that requires adequate engine power. Users of CNG-converted cars, including local cab drivers, admit that they don't always pass the test in these conditions and their operation requires frequent switching between alternative fuel sources. Autogas is virtually unknown in the Colombian transportation market, although the first representatives of Chinese and Turkish autogas companies are appearing in the country. Alejandro Martínez, president of GASNOVA, sees the current situation as an opportunity to develop the autogas market, while believing that it requires the adoption of high technical standards and the development of friendly public policies.

Bartosz Kwiatkowski, director general of POGP, gave a presentation during the Congress on the role of LPG in the transport mix in Poland and the European Union, and good practices for stimulating the development of this market. He then spoke at a panel on the National Energy Plan and the role of LPG in the government's strategy. He drew attention to the role of autogas in Europe, often treated as a social fuel, which would fill the needs that arise as a result of the withdrawal of subsidies for motor gasoline. Bartosz Kwiatkowski presented good practices - including subsidy systems for new LPG vehicles and for conversion to autogas known from the Italian market. He also discussed the most common market support solutions used in Poland and around the world. As of recently, newly registered CNG-powered cars can count on sales tax exemption in Colombia - GASNOVA hopes to develop a similar solution for autogas as well. A barrier to market development, however, could potentially prove to be the attitude of the administration. The government in Bogotá is concerned about dependence on foreign LPG suppliers, particularly the US, as a result of increased demand and thus also LPG imports.