Grupo Energía Bogotá S.A. E.S.P.

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What it is

GEB is a business group listed on the Colombian Stock Exchange, composed of more than 15 electricity and natural gas utilities with operations in Colombia, Peru, Brazil, and Guatemala. Its business is almost entirely regulated — meaning governments set the tariffs — which makes cash flows unusually predictable.

The group’s activities divide into four pillars: natural gas distribution to homes and businesses; natural gas transmission between cities; electricity distribution to end-customers; and electricity transmission across high-voltage networks. It owns 13,700 kilometres of electric transmission lines and 4,400 kilometres of gas pipelines, and serves 7.1 million clients.

With more than 100 years of experience in the electricity sector and 22 in natural gas, GEB is one of the most important business groups in Colombia. The company traces its roots to the night of 7 December 1889, when The Bogotá Electric Light Company first lit the city’s most-travelled streets — making GEB, in spirit, one of the oldest utilities in Latin America.

It was officially established in its current public-company form in 1896, and listed on the BVC in July 2008.

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Who owns it

The City of Bogotá (the Distrito Capital) is the dominant shareholder, holding 65.7% of the company. Colombia’s mandatory pension funds hold 21.5% — led by Porvenir, Protección, Colfondos, and Skandia — while Corficolombiana concentrates 5.2%, and the remaining 7.6% belongs to other investors.

In early 2026, the city government began exploring the sale of a further 9.4% stake, which would reduce the Distrito’s share to roughly 56.3% while preserving its majority control. The move coincides with the share price trading near all-time highs, around COP 3,300.

(US$0.96)

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Who runs it

Juan Ricardo Ortega is president (CEO) of the group. Jorge Tabares serves as vice-president of Finance (CFO).

Both executives delivered the full-year 2024 results presentation in March 2025.

At the March 2025 annual shareholders’ meeting, KPMG Colombia was appointed statutory auditor for the 2025–2026 period, reinforcing transparency for investors.

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The money, in plain words

In 2024, GEB produced consolidated revenue of COP 8 trillion (~USD 2.32 billion), a cash-generation margin (adjusted operating profit before depreciation) of COP 5.1 trillion (US$1.5 bn), and a net profit attributable to controlling shareholders of COP 2.5 trillion (~USD 724 million). Keeping about 31 cents of profit from every peso of revenue — a net margin of ~31% — is exceptional for any infrastructure company anywhere (our calculation).

Revenue was essentially flat year-on-year, up just 0.2% from COP 7.95 trillion (US$2.3 bn) in 2023, a consequence of weather and regulation rather than structural weakness. Electricity transmission, the group’s growth engine, expanded 10.3% year-on-year, driven by new infrastructure built across Colombia.

At a price-to-earnings ratio of roughly 10× and a dividend yield of about 8.8%, GEB trades at a meaningful discount to global utility peers while paying an outsized income — a combination that attracts pension funds and income-oriented investors. The group distributed COP 2.3 trillion (~USD 667 million) in dividends to its more than 14,000 shareholders during 2024, one of the highest absolute dividend payments in the local market.

Fitch Ratings carries GEB at an international credit rating of BBB, though it modified the outlook from stable to negative, a signal that regulators and lenders are watching the group’s debt load and the Colombian energy policy environment carefully.

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What it is doing now

In 2024 GEB deployed COP 2.0 trillion (~USD 580 million) in capital spending, primarily in Colombia. For 2025, it has budgeted COP 2.1 trillion (~USD 609 million), with electricity transmission taking half of that total.

At the 2025 annual meeting, the board was authorised to raise money in international capital markets through one or more bond issues during 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, to fund the investment plan, refinance existing debt, and support acquisitions. One flagship project — Colectora, a major new transmission line in the La Guajira region — completed 236 indigenous community consultations in 2024, the largest such process in Colombian history.

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What to watch

• Distrito stake sale: A possible sale of 9.4% by the city of Bogotá could raise around COP 2 trillion (~USD 580 million) and materially increase the stock’s free float and liquidity.
• Fitch negative outlook: The BBB rating with a negative outlook means any further deterioration in Colombia’s energy regulation or in the group’s debt metrics could trigger a downgrade — raising borrowing costs.
• Colectora project delivery: This transmission line is central to the reliability of Colombia’s electricity grid and to the country’s energy transition; delays or cost overruns would weigh on earnings.
• Gas supply pressure: Colombia’s historically low hydrology and uncertainty in gas supply remain the group’s most visible short-term risk, directly affecting the revenues of its gas transport subsidiary TGI.

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This is news, not investment advice.