CFE Invests US$8.7 Million in Baja California

CFE has allocated an investment of MX$151.65 million (US$8.7 million) in the state of Baja California for 2023, with the aim of strengthening the power infrastructure and optimizing maintenance work, benefiting 1.37 million users.

Currently, CFE maintains a specific subsidy agreement to support domestic rates with the Government of the State of Baja California, benefiting 382,701 domestic users in the region, who are subject to the 1F rate from May to October. The Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) is responsible for determining the final electricity rates for residential service users, while all other tariffs are determined by CRE, in accordance with Art. 31 of the Federal Public Innovation Law and Art. 139 of the General Electricity Industry Law (LIE).

Increases in billing that have occurred in most cases are a result of increased kWh consumption, primarily due to the necessary use of ventilation devices due to high temperatures in the region.

On Feb. 17, 2022, President López Obrador inaugurated phase one of Puerto Peñasco’s solar park in Sonora. The first stage has a projected annual electricity production of 1,041.74GWh and is expected to begin commercial activity in May 2023. López Obrador celebrated that the state of Baja California will be linked to the national transmission network as an added benefit of the project. “We will achieve the reconnection of the entire national network,” he said. The project’s first stage will bring electricity to about 64,000 households, while it will benefit 1.6 million people in the long run.

Moreover, recently, ​​Sempra Infrastructure, CFE and Grupo Carso signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to build a natural gas pipeline in Sonora and Baja California, interconnecting Carso’s Samalayuca-Sásabe and Sempra’s and Sásabe-Guaymas pipelines.

The proposed pipeline would be about 450km and aims to deliver natural gas to CFE power plants as well as to industries and private offtakers. The agreement is preliminary and non-binding, subject to feasibility studies, permits, financing and board approvals.