The Latin American and Caribbean Energy Organization (OLACDE), through the Latin American and Caribbean Methane Emissions Observatory (OEMLAC), launched the Diagnosis, Investment Roadmaps, Project Development and Energy Transformation (DRIVE) initiative during the 11th Energy Week. The regional platform is designed to identify, assess, structure, and accelerate renewable energy, decarbonization, and new business development projects led by National Oil Companies (NOCs).
DRIVE aims to support NOCs throughout their transformation journey, from identifying strategic opportunities to project structuring, financing, and implementation. The initiative will bring together technical expertise, strategic partners, and sources of climate, concessional, and development finance to help turn investment opportunities into viable projects.
“National Oil Companies have played a leading role in the energy development of Latin America and the Caribbean for decades, and they also have the capacity to lead their own transformation. Through DRIVE, we want to support them in turning new investment opportunities into concrete projects, building new capabilities, and mobilizing the resources needed for implementation,” said Andrés Rebolledo, Executive Secretary of OLACDE, during the launch.
As part of the launch, the Association of Oil, Gas and Renewable Energy Companies of Latin America and the Caribbean (ARPEL), the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI), and the Global Methane Hub (GMH) signed a Joint Declaration on the Strategic Transformation of National Energy Companies in Latin America and the Caribbean. Through the declaration, the signatories expressed their commitment to strengthening regional dialogue and cooperation, endorsed DRIVE as a platform to facilitate access to concessional, climate, and development finance, and invited international organizations, development banks, technical institutions, and academia to join the initiative.
Latin America and the Caribbean’s leading NOCs collectively generate approximately US$250 billion in annual revenue. OLACDE, through OEMLAC, estimates that these companies have a potential multi-year investment pipeline exceeding US$20 billion in renewable energy, decarbonization, and emerging low-carbon business projects. The organization has already initiated discussions with national energy companies across the region to identify opportunities and begin developing an initial regional project portfolio.
“NOCs possess the capabilities, assets, and significant investment opportunities needed to advance their transformation. Often, the challenge is not identifying what needs to be done, but rather structuring projects, finding the right partners, and securing the financing required to implement them. DRIVE is specifically designed to bridge that gap and do so at a regional scale,” explained Gastón Siroit, Director of OEMLAC.
For Henrique Bezerra, GMH’s Regional Director for Latin America, the initiative offers an opportunity to translate ambitious global climate commitments into concrete financial and operational mechanisms capable of transforming the region’s oil industry. It represents a shift from simply calling for methane emissions reductions to establishing the financial and technical infrastructure needed to make those reductions a reality. Meanwhile, Carlos Garibaldi, Executive Secretary of ARPEL, described DRIVE as a pragmatic step forward: an essential mechanism enabling the sector to take a leading role in its own transformation and decarbonization through practical, results-oriented action.
Ana Carolina González Espinosa, Senior Director of Programs and Latin America Director at NRGI, emphasized that future oil and gas demand remains uncertain, while investment decisions made today by state-owned oil companies could affect public finances for decades. She stressed the need for these companies to accelerate their transformation through transparent strategies that are accountable to citizens, manage energy transition risks, and create new business opportunities aligned with each country’s commitments.
The initiative will initially focus on five strategic areas: electricity infrastructure; sustainable refining; clean mobility; energy efficiency and emissions reduction; and new strategic business opportunities. These areas encompass renewable power generation and energy storage, biofuels and alternative fuels, electric mobility, methane emissions reduction and carbon management, as well as opportunities related to critical minerals.
DRIVE will also establish a regional dialogue platform for participating companies, open to international organizations, development banks, technical institutions, academia, and other interested civil society stakeholders.
OEMLAC will serve as DRIVE’s initial institutional platform, building on its experience and established relationships with NOCs across the region in methane emissions reduction and decarbonization. DRIVE will complement this work by expanding technical and strategic support to a broader range of energy transformation projects, while preserving OEMLAC’s specific mandate on methane emissions.
