Oil ‘does not guarantee stability’: Colombia’s environment minister on energy transition

The energy landscape is a shifting terrain, full of twists and turns, according to statistics in the latest report by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

While some countries are backtracking on phasing out fossil fuels, others are leaning in. While investment in renewables is surging beyond investment in fossil fuels, companies are repeatedly pulling out of climate commitments. Questions of energy security, stability, inflation, war and domestic politics are all influencing these trends, economists say.

Amid this volatile landscape is Colombia, a major oil-producing country where government officials say they will stay the course on their fossil fuel pledges. Since 2023, the government has halted all new oil and gas exploration contracts. And during a U.N. forum on Indigenous issues, the ministry of environment announced it will submit a resolution for a binding global agreement on due diligence of critical minerals, elements used to power renewable technologies.

The country’s goal is to progressively move away from oil and gas while strengthening local renewable energy and storage capacity. Lena Yanina Estrada, the new environment minister and first Indigenous person to hold the position, argues that it’s a model that helps bring long-term stability in a turbulent world.

“Colombia, like other Andean-Amazonian countries, is highly vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis. Persisting in the expansion of the fossil frontier will not help to diminish these impacts; instead, it will deepen dependence on volatile economies,” Estrada says.

“Dynamics in the international market show that dependence on the volatility of oil prices does not guarantee stability or energy sovereignty. … True long-term energy security is achieved by diversifying the energy matrix, reducing vulnerability to variations in fossil fuel prices and protecting strategic ecosystems.”

Fossil fuels still dominate the world’s growing energy demand, although renewables are gaining ground, particular solar photovoltaic. According to projections for global energy investment in 2025, nearly double will go to various renewable energy supplies ($2.2 trillion) compared with fossil fuels ($1.1 trillion).

For more countries in the Global South to be able to make this transition, Estrada says, there needs to be reform in the international market, as many industrially developing countries are busy putting more resources in debt payments rather than climate action.

Following London’s Climate Action Week, Mongabay interviewed Estrada to learn about the government’s plans for fossil fuels, renewable energy, infrastructure and how Indigenous rights fit in.

This interview was translated from Spanish and edited for clarity.

Mongabay: Since President Gustavo Petro’s ban on new licenses for oil and gas exploration, there have been frequent warnings that this could erode Colombia’s energy independence and increase its reliance on foreign fossil fuels. How do you see Colombia’s energy security and what are some of the environmental implications of importing energy from abroad?

Lena Yanina Estrada: Since the beginning of President Petro’s administration, Colombia has adopted a clear position toward a fair and accelerated energy transition. To stop granting new oil and gas exploration licenses is to comply with the global commitment to which Colombia joined as a party to the U.N. Paris Agreement. However, respecting the current regulations and the principles of legal certainty, this measure does not affect previously granted contracts that are already in operation.

Colombia does not depend exclusively on oil and gas for its energy matrix. In fact, 69% of the country’s electricity comes from renewable sources, mainly hydroelectric. The risk of ‘losing energy independence’ is an argument that ignores the dynamics of the international market, which show that dependence on the volatility of oil prices does not guarantee stability or energy sovereignty. In fact, there is no automatic correlation between increased fossil fuel production and guaranteed national energy coverage.

Therefore, we insist that energy security must be linked to a transition that prioritizes welfare, equity and fair access to renewable energy, not to the perpetuation of extractivist models that concentrate wealth and externalize impacts.

It also ignores the fact that true long-term energy security is achieved by diversifying the energy matrix, reducing vulnerability to variations in fossil fuel prices and protecting strategic ecosystems, including the territories of Indigenous peoples. One cannot speak of energy security without speaking of territorial justice. The expansion of the fossil fuel frontier has historically implied the violation of Indigenous peoples’ rights. Territories are being converted into sacrifice zones.

Colombia is actively promoting the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and needs regional and global allies for this transition to be truly organized, cooperative and just.

Moreover, this transformation requires a structural reform of the international financial architecture. As evidenced by the Expert Review on Debt, Nature and Climate, led by Colombia together with Germany, Kenya [and France] and presented in April 2025, the countries of the Global South are allocating more resources to external debt repayment than to climate action.

Mongabay: Do you think Colombia should continue to stay away from new oil and gas projects? What are the long-term strategies? And do you think other Latin American countries should do the same?

Lena Yanina Estrada: Yes, from a long-term social, environmental and economic perspective, it is necessary to continue on the path toward a post-extractivist model. Colombia, like other Andean-Amazonian countries, is highly vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis. Persisting in the expansion of the fossil frontier will not help to diminish these impacts; instead, it will deepen dependence on volatile economies, instead of strengthening sustainable sectors such as the bioeconomy, agroecology or nonconventional renewable energies.

The reasons are social and economic, but they are also solidly grounded in science: the climate goals of the Paris Agreement will not be met without a progressive, orderly and fair phaseout of fossil fuels.

Now, we must do this in a fair, planned manner. From the part of the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, we are advancing in a just energy transition that allows the country to progressively move away from dependence on oil and gas, while strengthening local renewable energy and storage capacities.

It was very interesting to share ideas with Ed Miliband, U.K. secretary of state for energy security and net zero. At our meeting here in London, we discussed these issues and agreed on the need to accelerate investments in renewable energies such as solar, wind and geothermal. During the meeting, I insisted on the relevance of advancing in full compliance with human rights and as states, to ensure that this implementation is not being done at the expense of Indigenous territories.

Innovative financial mechanisms that do not increase indebtedness are required. We need to include in the medium-term fiscal framework the valuation of natural capital and the just transition to a fossil fuel-free economy.

As President Petro stated at COP27, ‘The climate crisis can only be overcome if we stop consuming hydrocarbons, it is time to devalue the industry, with definite dates for its end.’ This vision reflects the claims of Indigenous peoples such as Berito Cobaría, spokesperson for the U’wa people, who for decades has stated that ‘oil is the blood of the Earth,’ and that extracting it is a form of spiritual and ecological violence.

Mongabay: In your speech during the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), you mentioned a new commitment for critical minerals. Could you share what that commitment is? And does Colombia plan to lead in critical minerals mining or regulations in South America?

Lena Yanina Estrada: During the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, Colombia presented its commitment to submit a resolution to the United Nations Environment Assembly in December for a binding global agreement on due diligence of critical minerals, including gold. This seeks to advance social and environmental governance in the minerals arena based on human rights, Indigenous peoples’ rights, climate justice and transparency.

Take what is happening with illegal mining. Even though we know that it is a scourge for our Amazon biome and for many communities that live there, many of the minerals extracted enter the market legally. This agreement seeks to prevent this, ensuring traceability, transparency and accountability, and thus stop illegal mining and its devastating impacts in Colombia and the world. It also follows the logic that just transition cannot repeat the practices of violence, dispossession and contamination of other extractive models.

This mechanism will ensure that minerals do not come from sources associated with human rights violations and prevent the global energy transition from occurring at the expense of territories, biodiversity and Indigenous communities.

Mongabay: What priorities will you promote during the upcoming U.N. climate conference, COP30, negotiations?

Lena Yanina Estrada: I think it’s fitting to tell you that in early June, an Indigenous Pre-COP was held and the organizations representing the Indigenous peoples of the Colombian Amazon and the nine countries of the Amazon Basin unanimously agreed on five key priorities to take to COP30, including the recognition of the integral protection of their territories as a climate action. We, as the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia, participated in this Pre-COP.

Colombia has the priority of taking the Indigenous agenda to the climate conference in Belém (COP30) and will promote, together with allied countries such as Brazil and Panama, five key points:

• First, transition to a fossil fuel-free economy. We can no longer ignore science and rights. We need global action that initiates a just, planned transition that addresses social, environmental and economic impacts and protects and guarantees human rights.
• Second, direct financing for Indigenous peoples. Today, climate finance is full of barriers. The territories are not receiving the resources or deciding where to invest them; this is still in the hands of intermediaries, including international NGOs. We must leave that behind. The new global finance goal and the Baku-Belém road map must include the operationalization of mechanisms for Indigenous peoples to access climate finance directly.
• Third, the COP must recognize the need to implement innovative financial mechanisms that do not increase countries’ indebtedness. According to the Expert Review on Debt, Nature and Climate that we promoted from Colombia, countries like ours are spending more on debt payments than the resources that enter in cooperation. We need to open space for valuing natural capital, starting with Colombia’s topsoil, in the fiscal frameworks and this will allow us to avoid being punished by the markets for wanting to reverse this unfair relationship of resource mobilization.

• Fourth, this will be a COP focused on adaptation. It is essential to incorporate a differential approach for Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendant peoples and local communities, recognizing that their knowledge systems and traditional knowledge contain solutions that come from those who truly care for nature and can and should guide us in adapting to the climate crisis. At the same time, their high vulnerability to climate change must be recognized, which requires specific measures, adequate resources and effective participation in the definition of indicators and means of implementation.

Mongabay: You mentioned Indigenous peoples and the Amazon. Indigenous leaders say they are not sufficiently included in the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO, an inter-governmental organization to promote sustainable development in the Amazon). Is this the case? And how could Indigenous people be better included?

Lena Yanina Estrada: We fully agree with the concerns expressed by Indigenous peoples regarding their limited inclusion in ACTO. Although spaces for dialogue have been created, it is undeniable that there is still a lack of an institutionalized mechanism to guarantee their full and effective participation, with the capacity to influence decision-making. This situation represents a historical debt that must be settled if we truly aspire to intercultural regional governance that is fair and respectful of the pluri-national and diverse nature of the Amazonian territories.

In this regard, Colombia strongly supports the creation of an Amazonian Indigenous Peoples’ Mechanism within the institutional architecture of ACTO.

This mechanism, currently under construction with member countries, will be formally approved and presented during the extraordinary meeting of presidents of Amazonian countries to be held in August 2025 in Bogotá. This is a crucial step in ensuring that Indigenous peoples are not only heard but can participate directly in the formulation of decisions that affect their territories and ways of life.

In addition, Colombia is actively pushing for the Declaration of Presidents to adopt clear and ambitious language on Indigenous peoples’ rights, recognizing their leading role as protectors of Amazonian ecosystems and as key actors in the climate crisis. As part of this process, the ministry of environment is organizing a National Amazon Dialogue with the Indigenous peoples of the Colombian Amazon, with the aim of incorporating their proposals and visions into regional discussions from the outset.

Indigenous peoples should not be consulted ex post facto but should be a constituent part of the design of regional policy for the Amazon. Only in this way will we be able to build legitimate, sustainable and truly representative governance.

Mongabay: On this general topic of countries seeking stability and protecting the Amazon, countries such as Brazil and Peru are working on infrastructure projects with China to reduce shipping costs, help move commodities and create a strategic trading hub. But environmentalists warn that these projects could boost deforestation and encourage land-grabbing in the rainforest. Is Colombia considering similar infrastructure projects with China? And if so, what environmental considerations will be taken into account to regulate what kind of projects are accepted?

Lena Yanina Estrada: Colombia is open to investment and cooperation with strategic partners for infrastructure development, but we clearly and firmly say yes to investment, but with respect for the rights of the peoples who inhabit the territories.

In Colombia, all infrastructure projects must be strictly aligned with our national and international climate commitments, including the Paris Agreement, and comply with criteria of sustainability, environmental justice, territorial equity and respect for human rights. From the part of the ministry of environment, we have instruments such as strategic environmental assessments (SEA), which ensure that infrastructure decisions are not made behind the back of the environment. We believe that development cannot come at any cost. No project should deepen the triple planetary crisis — climate, ecological and pollution — or impose itself on the rights of Indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants and local communities.

Colombia does not rule out exploring alliances with strategic countries such as China or the European Union, but any cooperation must be framed in principles of sustainability and a deep respect for life in all its forms.

Mongabay: What other policies do you plan to focus on and what is your vision for your work as minister of the environment?

Lena Yanina Estrada: For me, and for our government, it is a priority to stop deforestation, especially in the Amazon. We have a very big problem and that is an arc of deforestation that is moving toward the Colombian Amazon. It is a complicated situation because it is a center where there are also so many conflicts between different actors in our country.

It is also very important that the ministry implement a decree that was approved at the end of 2024 that recognizes Indigenous authorities as environmental authorities. Our ministry should implement it in a way that is fair and according to the realities of our country.

As Indigenous peoples, we have a very different vision of what conservation, the preservation of ecosystems, should be: Our vision is that we should live in the territories, conserve the ecosystems, take care of the ecosystems, but without ceasing to use the resources of nature. Our territories have had an enormous wealth of resources and we have used them in a sustainable manner.

In this sense, I believe we have much to contribute to the vision of how public policies are being generated in our country. Through training and education, we would obviously like to change the current vision around so that our citizens can understand that the resources of nature can be used, but in a sustainable manner while, above all, thinking of future generations.

Banner image: Lena Estrada, Colombia’s minister of environment. Image by Eduardo Santamaría.

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