Claudia Sheinbaum, president of Mexico, has presented an unprecedented National Energy Plan that seeks to accelerate the transition to clean energy and guarantee electricity supply for the entire population. The strategy involves an investment of more than 23 billion dollars.
The president has said that the initiative aims to strengthen the electricity industry, consolidate the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) as a pillar of energy sovereignty, encourage public-private participation and promote the adoption of environmentally friendly sources.
Luz Elena González, head of the Ministry of Energy (Sener), explains that the energy program is designed to recover the planning capacity of the State in the sector. He accuses that this power was lost after the policies implemented in 2013. Last week Sheinbaum signed a reform decree that has converted the CFE and Petróleos Mexicanos into public companies. “For us it is essential to guarantee energy independence. It is the right of all Mexicans to have sufficient energy at affordable prices. Also [debemos asegurar] that companies have a reliable and quality supply,” he added.
The initiative aims to prioritize universal and fair access to electricity. “We are going to serve homes that do not have it today. We will do it with local generation projects that, in some cases, will have social and community purposes,” says González. The Government has committed to keeping supply rates below inflation and offering subsidies to households in unfavorable situations.
The National Energy Plan contemplates that 54% of the electricity generation in the country is managed by federal authorities through the CFE. Emilia Esther Calleja, general director of the Commission, points out that an investment of 23.4 billion dollars is planned to promote electrical production, transmission and distribution developments between 2024 and 2030. The intention is to add 13,024 megawatts (MW) to the capacity of the installed infrastructure.
Mexico wants to add up to 9,000 MW of renewable energy
The strategy will allow the business sector to control 46% of electricity generation. This participation is expected to promote the incorporation of renewable sources and add between 6,000 and 9,000 MW of clean energy. The Executive Branch will support private local development projects with the potential to generate economic benefits for the communities that own the land. Sener announced that homes and small companies will be able to generate up to 0.7 MW for their own consumption without requiring distribution permits. It foresees that the set of measures will encourage the energy transition and will result in a reduction of between 2.7 and 4.5% in carbon dioxide emissions in 2030.
Electricity production through clean sources has weakened in the Mexican market. Sener calculated that renewable energy production reached 85.5 gigawatt-hours (GWh) last year, which represents a year-on-year reduction of 8.2%. The trend is moving the country away from fulfilling the commitment to generate 35% green energy in 2024 that it acquired when ratifying the Paris Agreement in 2016. According to the conclusions of the Energy Transition Index of the World Economic Forum, Mexico barely meets 54.1% of the goals established by the organization in the battle against climate change.
Sheinbaum admitted that the operation of much renewable energy requires sophisticated technical support to guarantee its availability because it depends on weather conditions. He stressed that with the implementation of the National Energy Plan the State will recover some administrative powers to ensure that the energy system is safer, more efficient and environmentally responsible.
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