CREG creates temporary projects to reduce unmet demand in the Caribbean

The Energy and Gas Regulatory Commission (CREG) established, through Resolution 101 136 of 2026, the rules for temporarily connecting electrical assets to reduce the unserved demand generated by the exhaustion of the National Interconnected System (SIN) networks. The regulation was approved in session 1509 on November 6, 2026, signed by the Minister of Mines and Energy, María Nohemí Arboleda, and the executive director of the entity, Adriana Jiménez Delgado, and published in the Official Gazette 53,689 on November 13, 2026. The instrument creates Temporary Solution Projects (PST) and focuses its attention on the Caribbean area, where the exhaustion of transformers and strategic circuits has forced repeated reliance on security generation.

The resolution is based on Laws 142 and 143 of 1994 and Decrees 1524 and 2253 of 1994 and 1260 of 2013, and develops the text that CREG submitted for public comment on September 30, 2026, under number 701 149. The commission concluded that it was not necessary to complete the competition advocacy process before the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce (SIC). The scope of application covers agents carrying out transmission and distribution activities in the SIN, as well as planning, coordination, and operation bodies.

The diagnosis: exhausted networks on the coast

The regulatory file includes warnings from the Electric Operational Planning Report Second Quarter 2026 by XM S.A. E.S.P., which detected low voltage levels, capacity exhaustion, and overloads during N-1 contingencies, with dependence on local generation and lower safe operation margins. The data cited in the resolution are as follows:

• 26.2 GWh of unserved demand recorded in the SIN between January and May 2026.
• 1.35 GWh of that total corresponded to 139 operational instructions from the National Dispatch Center (CND) due to overloads or low voltage.
• 146 instructions issued by the CND as of June 2026 due to generalized exhaustion of the Regional Transmission System and Local Distribution System networks in the Caribbean area.

CREG indicates that, given this situation, periodic monitoring meetings coordinated by the National Operation Council (CNO) have been held, in which temporary projects to relieve the load were explored, but rules regarding execution responsibilities, approval mechanisms, and remuneration were lacking.

What the regulation allows and what it prohibits

PSTs are projects dedicated exclusively to temporarily connecting assets to address an Emergency Situation: one in which, due to the exhaustion of the capacity of operational assets, unmet demand has already materialized in an operational sub-area or there is a high probability that it will occur within the following twelve months. Existing assets not linked to the service, reserve assets, assets obtained through rental, temporary assignment, or those acquired specifically for the project may be used.

The resolution is explicit regarding its limits: PSTs may not be classified as expansion projects nor replace or postpone the works that resolve the problem structurally. To be admitted, an alternative must plan for its commercial operation at least six months before the start of operation of the corresponding expansion project, and in no case may a PST become the permanent solution for an Emergency Situation.

Deadlines, concepts, and remuneration

The procedure is linked to a series of terms in business days:

• 30 days for the CNO, with support from the CND, to submit to the CREG the methodological proposal that determines the probability of materialization of unmet demand.
• 5 days for the CNO to determine if the situation is an emergency and 10 days for transporters to offer their assets.
• 15 days to prepare the Alternatives Study and 10 days for the CND, the Mining and Energy Planning Unit (UPME), and the network operator to issue their concepts.
• 5 days for the CNO to rule on impacts to the security and reliability of the system.
• Benefit-cost ratio equal to or greater than 1 as a condition for economic viability, calculated by the UPME or the network operator.

Remuneration is paid only if the asset does not receive income through another mechanism and distinguishes between Type 1 assets (new, remunerated during the recognized useful life) and Type 2 assets (reserve, existing, or rented, remunerated only while operating in the project). The monthly income is assigned to all SIN marketers pro rata to their demand and is added to the total cost of restrictions of CREG Resolution 119 of 2007. If the transporter fails to meet the operation date, the Account Liquidator and Administrator (LAC) will bill them 50% of the project’s monthly income each month.

The regulation governs from its publication in the Official Gazette. Additionally, the UPME must maintain a public inventory of the assets of each PST, and network operators shall publish a progress balance of the structural solution works every November 30; the first report must be presented no later than 180 calendar days after entry into force.

The impact falls directly on coastal users, who endure outages due to exhausted networks while expansion works mature. With these rules, the CREG enables a rapid response using equipment available on the market and transfers its cost to national demand, while empowering the Superintendency of Residential Public Services to investigate agents who fail to execute the committed expansion.

Source: Official Gazette, 53.689, November 13, 2026, pp. 38-45 (official reference: CREG Resolution 101 136 of 2026).