For years, residents of Santiago de Cali have faced high electricity bills, carefully managing their appliance usage to avoid spikes in expenses.

In 2025, President Gustavo Petro’s government took action to lower their bills by implementing renewable energy as a cost-effective solution, and it is working. To address increasing household expenses in Colombia’s third-largest metropolitan area, Cali, the government collaborated with local utility program EMCALI to push the Hogares Energéticamente Sostenibles (Energy-Sustainable Homes) initiative, or Colombia Solar. The project’s goal extended beyond implementing sustainable energy infrastructure; it aimed to lift 2,000 low-income families in Cali out of poverty by reducing energy bills.

Simultaneously, it sought to lessen the government’s reliance on subsidization by reallocating money from energy subsidies to the solar initiative. This Cali-specific investment comprised 36,800 million Colombian pesos (COP), about $9 million.

Implementation and Impact

As of August 2025, Colombia Solar successfully installed photovoltaic systems in 1,860 low-income households in the Potrero Grande and Llano Verde neighborhoods, according to Minister of Mines and Energy Edwin Palma. In September of the same year, these programs urged the solar project to continue reducing poverty in Cali, aiming for their goal of 2,000 households.

The results have been significant. Increased solar energy usage has reduced most sustainable households’ electric bills by 40% to 60%, with some reporting no charges at all. “This program is a blessing. Before, I had to stop using the fan or blender because the energy consumption skyrocketed. We were paying up to 230,000 pesos a month; now the bill is down 100,000 pesos. It is a huge help for my family,” beneficiary Bellanira Guzmán said.

The Bigger Picture

Colombia Reports indicates that while extreme poverty has decreased in the last 10 years, urban poverty was still at 30% in 2022. Disparities have worsened in areas like food and housing deficiency in the last five years.

The city organizes its social classes in categories one through six, with six being the highest class and one the lowest. Neighborhoods are organized according to these metrics. This recent program, aimed at Cali’s three lowest social strata, relieved significant financial burdens on thousands of people dealing with these disparities.

Colombia Solar’s program has shown that measures of equity and renewability can have real, sustainable impacts on well-being. Aiming this initiative at Cali’s three lowest social strata has relieved significant financial burdens, allowing them to narrow the wealth gap with higher economic strata.

Beyond poverty reduction, Colombia Solar has impacted the country’s energy industry. From 2025 to 2026, Colombia’s solar energy market grew by 0.7%, showing its effect on larger markets as well as locally. The report estimates additional growth up to 8% by 2031.

This economic growth could potentially create 25,000 jobs in Colombia’s renewable energy industry nationwide as the broader Colombia Solar program, backed by a separate 8.35 trillion COP (about $2.2 billion) national investment, expands to more than 1 million low-income households between 2026 and 2030. The government already provides tax breaks and subsidies for businesses using renewable energy resources, covering installation costs.

While installations can be expensive, results clearly show that long-term savings on bills are worthwhile.

Why Cali’s Case Matters

The advantages of this solar project in Cali are abundant. It has brought prosperity to impoverished populations and positively impacted larger economic markets with job creation and the growth of renewable energy industries.

The use of renewable energy in Cali demonstrates that sustainability, poverty reduction and market prosperity can work together.

– Aren Lau

Aren is based in Brooklyn, NY, USA and focuses on Good News and Technology for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Pexels