CFE starts up 927MW combined cycle plant in central Mexico

Mexico’s state-owned utility CFE has begun generating power at a 927MW combined cycle gas turbine plant in Guanajuato state, central Mexico.

CFE said the Salamanca plant would serve more than 540,000 households.

In a press release on Sunday, the company said that the new plant would support Mexico's energy transition as it is powered by natural gas, which it said was a clean fuel.

CFE is investing heavily in gas-fired generation across Mexico. 

Earlier this month, the utility's CEO, Emilia Esther Calleja Alor, presented CFE's expansion plan for the coming years.

That plan includes a second phase at Salamanca. The second phase of the plant will add 478MW of capacity and will require investment of US$405mn. It is scheduled to start operations in June 2028.

The tender process for the second phase will begin by April. 

New plants

The next two plants to be inaugurated will also be in central Mexico.

A 437MW combined cycle plant in San Luis Potosí will begin operations at the end of March, followed by a 246MW plant in Querétaro in June.

Those will be followed by a 346MW plant in Manzanillo on the Pacific coast and a 350MW plant in Lerdo in the northern state of Durango.

From 2028 to 2030, CFE plans to invest US$3.4bn to bring online 2.7GW of combined cycle gas turbine plants, including the second phase at Salamanca. 

CFE's investment drive is increasing Mexico's dependence on cheap imports of US natural gas.

With trade tensions with the US increasing, the Mexican government plans to increase its capacity to store natural gas and provide backup in the event of any interruptions to supply from the US.