Oil-rich African nations and Colombian President Gustavo Petro said that petroleum exploration can continue alongside the transition to cleaner energy sources [1, 2].
This position challenges the global push for an immediate phase-out of fossil fuels, suggesting that developing economies require oil revenue to finance the very infrastructure needed for a green transition.
During the Santa Marta conference in Colombia, participating African countries said that drilling is necessary to sustain national development [1]. These leaders said that oil exploration and the transition to clean energy are not mutually exclusive, but can coexist to ensure economic stability [1].
President Petro also addressed the role of the state oil company in Colombia, advocating for its transition toward clean energy [2]. This approach seeks to leverage existing petroleum assets to pivot the national energy matrix.
However, the strategy of prioritizing oil faces significant criticism regarding its economic and environmental viability. A study cited by Agência Brasil indicated that Brazil could lose R$ 47 billion [3] by prioritizing oil exploration at the mouth of the Amazon over renewable energy investments.
Resource requirements for the transition also present a logistical challenge. A typical electric vehicle requires six times [4] more minerals than a conventional car, while a wind farm needs nine times [5] more raw materials than a gas-fired power plant.
These mineral demands create a tension between the desire to reduce fossil fuel dependence and the physical materials required to build a new energy grid. While UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for an urgent reduction in fossil fuel reliance, the nations at Santa Marta said that the financial reality of development requires a slower, dual-track approach [1].
“Oil exploration and the transition to clean energy are not mutually exclusive.”
The divide between the Global North and Global South regarding energy transitions is widening. While international bodies push for immediate decarbonization, developing nations argue that they cannot afford to abandon oil revenues before green alternatives are economically viable. This creates a geopolitical deadlock where the financial cost of the transition is shifted onto the countries least equipped to pay for it without the bridge of fossil fuel profits.
