What are Mexico’s plans for the decarbonization of the global economy amid the worldwide call to combat climate change? And how is the northern state of Sonora involved?
Mexico’s “main bet” in its attempts to transition to cleaner energy is the Plan Sonora renewable energy initiative, Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo said Wednesday during a meeting in Mexico City with federal Energy Minister Luz Elena González Escobar.
Under Durazo, the state has been working closely with the federal government for several years to execute Plan Sonora, a comprehensive energy, development and economic growth plan that would bring the state (and Mexico) foreign investment and greater energy independence as well as, Durazo is betting, turn Sonora into a “Silicon Valley” for clean energy.
The centerpiece of the US $7 billion Plan Sonora is a massive solar park in Puerto Peñasco, located on the northern coast of the Gulf of California just 100 kilometers from Sonora’s border with Arizona.
The aim is for the solar park to provide electricity to new industrial parks in Sonora and more than 160,000 homes. It is already partially operational, but not yet finished.
Authorities also hope that lithium mining will be another big part of Plan Sonora, given that there are large deposits of the sought-after metal in Sonora. However, the deposits are situated in clay, making the lithium difficult to mine. President Claudia Sheinbaum said earlier this month that the state-owned company Litio para México (Lithium for Mexico) is working toward the goal of mining lithium in Mexico.
At their meeting on Wednesday, Durazo and González agreed to keep pushing ahead with renewable energy initiatives in Sonora. Mexico, led by Sheinbaum, a climate scientist, since Oct. 1, is aiming for a 35% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
Betting on the economic benefits of green energy
In addition to assisting the energy transition in Mexico, Plan Sonora has “a focus on the well-being” of the residents of Sonora, Durazo said.
He said that Plan Sonora is also attracting private investment to Sonora, citing Houston-based company Mexico Pacific Limited’s US $15 billion natural gas project in Puerto Libertad as one example.
A Chinese company, Ganfeng Lithium, has run into problems with the federal government over its plans to mine lithium in Sonora, but the two parties could come to an agreement in the near future. Mexico nationalized lithium in 2022.
Sonora lawmaker Amairany Peña Escalante said this week that Plan Sonora is already making state capital Hermosillo and the port city of Guaymas more competitive. The Mexican Institute for Competitiveness recently ranked Hermosillo as Mexico’s most competitive city among cities with a population between 500,000 and 1 million. Guaymas was ranked as the most competitive city among those with fewer than 250,000 residents.
Peña said that Sonora’s focus on renewable energy projects helped the cities come out on top in their population categories.
Plan Sonora is also expected to help strengthen bilateral relations between Mexico and the United States by encouraging nearshoring investment.
In a social media post on Wednesday, González said that federal and Sonora authorities were continuing to work on projects that “will strengthen regional development and improve the quality of life of businesses and families.”
With reports from Milenio and Reporte Indigo
