CDMX Metro’s Electric System Modernization Almost Complete

Modernization works for the electrical supply of the Mexico City Metro’s Lines 1, 2, and 3, overseen by state electric utility CFE, will be completed by September 2022, announced the Mexico City government.

"We believe in public companies. We believe that CFE should be strengthened as a public company of the State that provides electric service to the population. We believe in energy sovereignty," said Claudia Sheinbaum, Mayor of Mexico City.

Manuel Bartlett Díaz, Director General, CFE, assured that the work represents a “technological revolution” by integrating the latest technical and scientific equipment, to the benefit of the millions of citizens who use the Metro every day.

"This is proof of the country's need for public companies, owned by the people of Mexico, owned by the state, whose objective is not to make major profits but to serve the population," said Bartlett.

Guillermo Calderón Aguilera, Director General, the Metro’s Collective Transport System, reported that the project is 85 percent complete, having applied an investment of MX$4.5 billion (US$222.1 million). Calderón added that the Metro Energy Project will have the highest safety standards and improve the quality of the system, which will guarantee a continuous, safe and efficient supply of electricity for Lines 1, 2 and 3 for the next 40 years.

The Metro-Energy project is spread across three installations. Four transformers with a total capacity of 240MVA will be installed in a first location. The second will be a four-story building that will house a high voltage power substation, encapsulated in sulfur hexafluoride, which will be the largest and most modern in the country. The third building will house the Energy Control Center for lines 1, 2 and 3.

The project will connect the subway to the CFE's electrical system. It also includes the replacement of the electricity sources from two substations, one at Kilometer Zero in Nonoalcoand the other in Jamaica, through 27km of power cable and 111km of medium-voltage cable.

Guillermo Nevárez Elizondo, Corporate Director, CFE Distribution, explained that the Metro-Energy project is being developed in three phases. Phase 1 includes the restoration of the metro’s electric power after the fire of Jan. 9, 2021. Phase 2 involves the construction of a power substation to replace the current temporary solution, including two transmission lines to feed Metro lines 1, 2 and 3. This phase is still in progress. Finally, phase 3 entails a project to modernize the medium-voltage infrastructure of Line 1 and its 17 rectifier substations.