Colombia has signed an agreement with the state-owned energy company Gecelca (Generadora y Comercializadora de Energía del Caribe) to implement a large-scale residential solar energy program aimed at reducing electricity bills for low-income families. The initiative was announced by the Colombian government this week.
Dubbed Colombia Solar, the program foresees investments of around US$1,06 billion and will finance the installation of photovoltaic systems in more than 560 homes by 2030, distributed across 13 departments of the country.
The first phase of the project will focus on the Colombian Caribbean region, historically affected by power outages and decades of underinvestment in electrical infrastructure. The government expects to gradually expand the program to other regions of the country.
Colombia Solar is aimed at residential consumers classified in income brackets 1, 2, and 3, who already receive tariff subsidies. The goal is to reduce these families' dependence on the conventional electricity grid through small-scale distributed solar generation installed directly in their homes.
The projects will be implemented in departments such as Atlántico, Bolívar, Antioquia, La Guajira, and Cundinamarca. Each household will receive a photovoltaic kit sized according to its consumption profile and local generation potential.
According to Gecelca, the systems will allow some beneficiaries to generate more energy than the volume currently covered by state subsidies. "Each household will be able to produce around 12 kWh per day, which represents approximately 360 kWh per month," explained the company's interim CEO, Erick Wehdeking.
In addition to the social impact, the Colombian government believes that the program will help reduce the fiscal burden of electricity subsidies and advance the strategy of diversifying the energy matrix, decreasing dependence on fossil fuels in the long term.
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