Colombia’s Terpel advances electromobility plans

Colombian fuel distribution group Terpel has officially established Terpel Voltex as part of its electromobility strategy.

The subsidiary’s “main activity consists of the purchase, sale, acquisition to any title and distribution of electric energy and/or any other alternative energy to vehicles, through service stations and/or any other location and/or means of supply,” Terpel said in a regulatory filing.

Voltex’s scope may include advisory services, investment or participation as a partner or shareholder in related companies.

The fuel giant took a first step in November with the presentation of the Voltex brand which Terpel touts as Colombia’s first electric vehicle charging network.

Terpel envisions 30 charging points online by the end of this year, including along the Bogotá-Medellín highway, with an average charging time of 40 minutes at a cost of 18,000-25,000 pesos (US$5-7).

Information from the country’s national sustainable mobility association Andemos shows that 923 electric vehicles were sold in 2019 compared to 390 the year before.

According to mining energy planning unit UPME, around 30% of Colombia's vehicles will be electric by 2050.

In November, the government published a national electromobility strategy that targets the incorporation of 600,000 electric vehicles by 2030.

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