Water Management & Energy
Colombia’s Water Management & Energy sector is one of the most important branches to Dutch companies according to ‘Ondernemend Nederland’, a Dutch business talk show. Especially, Colombia’s Water Management sector has long-standing ties with both Dutch companies as well as the Dutch government. The first Water Management project between The Netherlands and Colombia sprouted in the 70s. Recently, just after the severe flooding in 2011, the two countries launched a new project; The Holland-Colombia Water Partnership. This partnership aims at stimulating Dutch companies to enter the Colombian water market and initiated several projects in which Dutch and Colombian multinationals cooperated by sharing knowledge and technology. Both countries are looking for ways to make their future more sustainable by developing resilient cities, making their ports sustainable, improving inland water transport, prevent the country against flooding and using the available water more efficiently. With a view to collaboration, the Dutch government supports businesses with a variety of trading and investment inducing instruments. As a matter of fact, Colombia is added to the ‘Partners voor water 2016-2021’ program. This opens up opportunities for all types of water-related businesses.
The Energy sector in Colombia is closely linked to the Water Management sector, since approximately 65% of Colombia’s energy supply relies on hydropower generation. The growing economy provides opportunities in this sector as well, since the electricity network only covers one third of Colombia’s surface. This grants 96% of all Colombians access to electricity. However, power interruptions occur frequently so there still is room for improvement.