Mexico’s President-Elect Claudia Sheinbaum’s energy plan and appointment of Luz Elena González to head the Ministry of Energy suggest a new national focus on renewables. Within its political context, however, the meaning of the posting may not be so clear.
During a live social media broadcast, Ms. Sheinbaum announced the new members of her cabinet for the 2024-2030 term. She opened with Ms. González, an economist with a background sustainable development.
Sheinbaum’s energy plan
Ms. González will be responsible for executing Ms. Sheinbaum’s energy plans, which may include an investment of MX $251 billion (USD $13.6 billion) in power generation and transmission with a focus on renewables. Projects announced to begin in October may spend MX $55.4 billion (USD $3 billion) building and repairing 3,850 km of transmisison lines.
Ms. Sheinbaum has said she intends to focus on renewable energy, installing about 80GW of solar, wind, geothermal and hydro. Part of that bill should pay for the repair of aging hydroelectric plants, and some may be destined for new natural gas power plants. The goal is to add 13.7 gigawatts by 2030.
“We are going to accelerate the energy transition,” Ms. Sheinbaum said at a conference in April. “Looking ahead, we are working on this energy plan not only with a view to 2030, but also until 2050 to align with international commitments on climate change.”
A legacy of fossil fuels
Ms. Sheinbaum’s team has retained a mix of public and privately owned electricity utilities following policy established by outgoing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. At the moment, 54 percent of power generation is reserved for the state electric utility CFE, and 46 percent is for private companies. Lithium and other critical minerals used in batteries in renewable power systems and electric vehicles will remain under state control through the public company LitioMx.
A transition to renewables would represent a shift in Mexican energy policy. It’s not clear how much the new administration may be willing to part paths with President López Obrador (often referred to by his initials, AMLO).
“Sheinbaum’s energy policy depends on how much she can or wants to break with AMLO, who is her political benefactor and remains Mexico’s most popular politician, and is the glue that holds the ruling party (and her congressional majorities) together,” Dr. Fabián Borges, political scientist at California State University, San Bernardino, told E4C. “Her background leads you to believe renewables will be promoted, or at least not be discriminated against. But AMLO is powerful and convinced that oil production and gasoline self-sufficiency is key to Mexico’s development.”
