The natural gas supply crunch in Colombia has intensified after a Calgary judge granted Canacol Energy the legal authority to terminate its supply contracts.
The Canadian firm, the country’s second-largest gas provider after state-owned Ecopetrol, had long sought to exit its agreements, and the ruling removes the final legal barrier to doing so.
This development threatens to exacerbate an already tight supply situation in the region.
The immediate impact is being felt by industrial consumers dependent on Canacol’s output.
Cerro Matoso, a major Colombian nickel producer, has escalated its warnings regarding the crisis, stating that approximately 90,000 tonnes of coal production are now at risk.
The company relies on coal for its operations, and the disruption to gas supplies—which often underpin broader energy stability for heavy industry—poses a direct threat to its output levels.