Mexico’s National Grid Under the Spotlight

This week’s comments from grid operator CENACE and CRE’s new grid code frame the public versus private energy sector debate. In other news, Atlas Renewable Energy received an environmental award and companies shape up for a successful 2022.

Read this and more in this week’s roundup!

MEXICO

SEAL Awards Recognizes Atlas Renewable for Environmental Initiative

Global renewable energy developer Atlas Renewable Energy received an accolade from SEAL Awards’ Business Sustainability area, under the Environmental Initiative Award category. Atlas was recognized for its environmental activity to protect and preserve so-called howler monkeys near its 444MW La Pimienta project, located in Campeche.

CRE Publishes Isolated Supply Requirements, Grid Code 2.0

Mexico’s Energy Regulation Commission (CRE) published the criteria by which isolated energy supply, meant purely for self-use, is to be defined. CRE furthermore altered characteristics of the grid code, with both provisions already in force.

Renewables’ Oversupply: Grid's Main Problem, Says CENACE

Director of Mexican grid operator CENACE, Ricardo Mota Palomino, says that Mexico’s biggest energy problem is the excess of unplanned intermittent renewable energy. For this reason, he proposed to move away from the current economically-minded dispatch to an old electricity planning model used prior to the 2014 Energy Reform.

How Will Mexico’s Battery Storage Capacity Develop in 2022?

As battery storage continues its global development, experts point toward the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the risk of blackouts as drivers for its takeoff in Mexico. Nevertheless, other industry insiders point at lithium shortages and high CAPEX as factors holding the technology back. How could this segment develop in 2022?

Arctech Gears up For Greater Latin American Market Penetration

Arctech, a leading tracking, racking and building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) solutions provider, reported this December that it is preparing to grow its Latin American market share. A halt in utility-scale solar project developments could slow the company’s progress in Mexico, though higher demand for racking and BIPV is expected for 2022.

A Clearer Insight into Mexico’s ‘Dirty’ Fuel Oil Business

CFE’s use of fuel oil became a major fault line in the coarsening discussion between public and private corners of Mexico’s energy sector. While it is a cheap and convenient fuel for the company, its use for power production harms the environment. Even so, a closer look at the issue reveals a more complex situation than simply choosing between ‘clean’ and ‘dirty’ energy.

INTERNATIONAL

EU Energy Supply Problems Could Worsen Because of Cold Weather, Russia Relationship

Natural gas storage systems have never been as empty as they are at this time of the winter. Elevated gas prices pose problems for utilities, businesses and households. As a result of the situation, the EU is subjected to the weather and the region’s rocky relationship with Russia, the main natural gas producer of the continent.