Colombia has seen an increase in oil production in recent years following a period of steady declines. The Colombian government has implemented a partial privatization of state oil company Ecopetrol in an attempt to revive its upstream oil industry. In addition, it has enacted a series of regulatory reforms to make the sector more attractive to foreign investors. Historically, the oil sector has been targeted by attacks from insurgent groups, though the situation has improved in recent years with a substantial reduction in the number of attacks against Colombia’s energy infrastructure. While the security situation has improved, Colombia's longstanding civil conflict has taken its toll on the country's energy sector, with the country’s pipelines and power lines still experiencing occasional sabotage by insurgent groups.

In 2006, Colombia consumed 1.3 quadrillion Btus of total energy. Oil constituted the largest part of this amount, followed by hydroelectricity. Colombia is also an important producer of high quality coal. Because Colombia relies upon hydropower for the bulk of its electricity needs, it is able to export almost all of its coal production, making it one of the world’s largest coal exporters.