diff --git a/platformio/builder/tools/piolib.py b/platformio/builder/tools/piolib.py
index 17fc37d3..a63a0f5c 100644
--- a/platformio/builder/tools/piolib.py
+++ b/platformio/builder/tools/piolib.py
@@ -174,6 +174,11 @@ class LibBuilderBase(object):
     def version(self):
         return self._manifest.get("version")
 
+    @property
+    def dependent(self):
+        """Backward compatibility with ESP-IDF"""
+        return self.is_dependent
+
     @property
     def dependencies(self):
         return self._manifest.get("dependencies")