Mexico must invest US$110bn in power plants, lines – International Chamber of Commerce

In order for Mexico to maintain 2.4% annual GDP growth over the next 15 years, the country will have to invest 2tn pesos (US$112bn) to deploy some 59,000km of power transmission lines and build infrastructure to generate over 100GW of energy. 

This will require the investment of some 132bn pesos per year, according to an analysis from the energy committee of the International Chamber of Commerce México (ICC México), which also warned that the country has a cumulative deficit of 4,370km of power transmission lines that were not built between 2018 and 2022.

“One of the main conclusions is that, for every percentage point of GDP growth, 800km per year of transmission lines must be erected,” ICC México said in a statement, adding that the infrastructure to be built must focus on combined cycle plants and renewable energy facilities based on solar and wind power.

Mexico's state power utility CFE is seeking to carry out two major sets of tenders before the end of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's term in October 2024 that would result in the construction of more than 4,000km of transmission lines in the Yucatán peninsula and the northeastern states of Sinaloa, Nayarit and Sonora. 

While the more than 300 works included in these tenders are essential to underpin the country's growth, these projects were supposed to be built two or three years ago and authorities are now rushing the companies that might want to be involved due to the tight schedules, Salvador Portillo Arellano, president of electrical manufacturing chamber Caname, told BNamericas last week. 

“ICC México calls on the different actors to take into consideration the energy needs for national growth and to take expeditious action to take advantage of the current situation and achieve or even exceed the country's growth goals,” the chamber said. 

“The relationship between growth and investment in electrical infrastructure is very strong and therefore a significant commitment to an adequate electrical system for development is required,” it added.