Celsia Colombia S.A. E.S.P. (Epsa)

What it is

Celsia Colombia participates in every link of the electricity chain in Colombia — generation, transmission, distribution, and retail sales. It owns hydroelectric, thermal, and solar power plants, and supplies power to more than 1.3 million customers in the Valle del Cauca and Tolima.

Its roots go back to the Empresa de Energía del Pacífico (EPSA), founded in 1986; the business has evolved through successive changes and acquisitions to become Celsia. In 2012 the parent company, Colinversiones, rebranded as Celsia S.A., anchoring a new identity around growth, sustainability, and energy transition.

Who owns it

Grupo Argos S.A. holds 52.93% of Celsia’s subscribed and paid capital, constituting legal control under Colombian law. Celsia is a subsidiary of Grupo Argos, the Colombian infrastructure holding company, and its administrative headquarters sits in Medellín, Antioquia.

The remaining ~47% floats freely on the BVC, making Celsia one of Colombia’s most widely held energy stocks.

The share is a component of the MSCI COLCAP index — Colombia’s benchmark for institutional investors — which guarantees a steady flow of index-tracking buyers. The March 2026 shareholder assembly drew participation from more than 31,000 shareholders.

Who runs it

Ricardo Sierra continues as President (CEO) of Celsia, leading a strategy focused on reducing debt, optimising operating margins, and capturing growth in Colombia’s electricity sector. Under his leadership the company has positioned itself as a leader in solar energy in Colombia, expanded distribution and retail, extended its international footprint to Peru, and launched the EnergizarC cost-reduction programme.

For the period April 2026–March 2028 the assembly elected a board with four new members; Sierra noted the departure of Jorge Mario Velásquez, who had chaired the board for ten years. Board members linked to Grupo Argos serve without remuneration from Celsia.

A chief financial officer for CSACOL specifically is not separately disclosed in available sources.

The money, in plain words

In 2024 Celsia Colombia’s separate revenues reached COP 6.8 trillion (US$2.0 bn) (consolidated; ~$1.97 bn), up 9.3% from COP 6.2 trillion (US$1.8 bn) in 2023. The consolidated net profit for the year was COP 337,387 million (US$98 mn) (~$97.8 m), a decline of 3.3% from 2023.

That works out to a net profit margin of roughly 5 cents on every peso of sales — thin for a regulated utility, squeezed by a prolonged El Niño weather event that cut water flows to the hydro dams and forced expensive thermal backup (our calculation).

The operating cash-flow proxy — EBITDA — was COP 1.49 trillion (US$432 mn) (~$432 m), down 19.4%; the EBITDA margin compressed to 22%. The company’s debt cost fell sharply, from 15.95% in December 2023 to 11.61% by end-2024, though total consolidated debt closed the year at COP 5.51 trillion (US$1.6 bn) (~$1.60 bn), implying a leverage ratio — net debt divided by EBITDA — of 3.56 times.

That leverage is the single biggest watch item for fixed-income investors; management’s stated goal is to bring it down.

The picture brightened materially in 2025. Full-year 2025 EBITDA rose to COP 1.66 trillion (US$481 mn) (+11.8%), the EBITDA margin recovered to 30.9%, and net profit reached COP 359,634 million (US$104 mn) (+6.6%).

The Celsia share itself gained 33.2% through 2025, and with dividends included the total return to shareholders was 40.2%.

What it is doing now

At the March 2026 assembly, shareholders approved a distribution of COP 364,500 million (US$106 mn) (~$105.6 m) through two channels: cash dividends of COP 208 (US$0.06)per share (~$0.060) paid in three tranches through January 2027, and an extraordinary buyback of up to COP 150 billion (US$43 mn) at COP 9,002 (US$3)per share.

The solar platform C2 Energía — built with UK partner Cubico Sustainable Investments — grew revenues 46% in 2024 and has around 600 MW of solar capacity either operating or in advanced construction. Celsia also entered Peru, seeding a renewable-energy investment fund targeting more than one gigawatt in solar and wind projects with its own commercial off-take structure.

What to watch

• Hydrology and El Niño cycles. Over the past ten years the company has averaged a 30% EBITDA margin, but results swing sharply in El Niño years — as 2024 showed. A return to normal rainfall is the single biggest near-term earnings lever.
• Debt reduction. Leverage at 3.56× net debt/EBITDA (2024) is above the 2.5–3× comfort zone most utilities target. Management has made deleveraging a stated priority; watch each quarterly result for progress.
• Solar build-out. Ricardo Sierra has set an ambition of more than one gigawatt of solar in operation within three years. Execution risk — permitting, grid connection, financing — is real in the Colombian regulatory environment.
• Regulatory climate. The 2024 results were hit by both prolonged drought and regulatory moves that created instability in the sector. Any further tariff or dispatch-rule changes in Bogotá are a direct earnings risk.
• Grupo Argos restructuring. Grupo Argos is actively reorganising its portfolio, separating Cementos Argos and sharpening its energy focus. Any change in the parent’s ownership stake would be a share-price catalyst in either direction.

This is news, not investment advice.