Mexico to Acquire Debt for Sonora Plan
Home > Energy > Article

Mexico to Acquire Debt for Sonora Plan

Photo by:   Pixabay.com
Share it!
Perla Velasco By Perla Velasco | Journalist & Industry Analyst - Tue, 12/27/2022 - 18:21

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that Mexico is willing to acquire debt to develop solar plants for the Sonora Plan. Debt would come through credits granted by the US with low interest rates contracted by the Ministry of Finance rather than CFE itself.

President López Obrador stated that the plants will be fully operated by CFE and their construction will only require Mexican and US companies, although Canada could join this agreement. According to the president, it was important that these credits were granted under Mexico’s conditions, since it did not plan to go into debt but the Sonora Plan was the exception. “(The US) decided that they are going to help with loans at low rates. It is about producing clean energy, which is very important to us. We accept that these (loans) can be acquired or contracted because they are for the future development of the country with two conditions on our part,” said López Obrador.

The Sonora Plan contemplates the construction of the biggest solar plant in Latin America at Puerto Peñasco. Among the plan’s main objectives are lithium extraction in Sonora and gas liquefaction for exports, as well as developing the solar plant in Puerto Guaymas and Puerto Peñasco. These efforts are expected to be replicated in different states until they can generate 40 percent of the energy in Mexico.

Regarding the USMCA dispute over energy policy, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marcelo Ebrad, stressed that Plan Sonora will be a key issue to be addressed during the meeting with US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Furthermore, the president said that he is considering promoting the construction of automotive plants for electric vehicles in Sonora, since this state produces copper. As previously reported by MBN, the Sonora plan is expected to become a global benchmark for public efforts to speed up the energy transition, reduce environmental footprints and turn the state into a source of green jobs. In addition, Sonora is expected to become a leader in the production of electronic components and semiconductors in the coming years thanks to its lithium reserves. 

Recently the Ministry of Finance carried out a debt reduction operation to partially pay its external debt with a prepayment to numerous multilateral organizations, as it follows on a previous 10-year benchmark reference operation from earlier this month to improve Mexico’s finances. The payment included two loans from the Inter-American Development Bank for an amount corresponding to MX$896 million (US$45 million).

Photo by:   Pixabay.com

You May Like

Most popular

Newsletter