National Energy Commission to Operate With Technical Committee

Mexico’s newly established National Energy Commission (CNE) will oversee the country’s hydrocarbon and electricity sectors through a Technical Committee, a key element in the regulatory overhaul introduced under President Claudia Sheinbaum’s energy reform.  

CNE replaces CRE and CNH, consolidating regulatory functions under the Ministry of Energy (SENER). This new commission will be responsible for issuing regulations, granting permits, and overseeing compliance across the energy value chain.  

The Technical Committee will consist of eight members and will be chaired by Minister of Energy, Luz Elena González. The SENER chief will also preside over the boards of directors for both PEMEX and the CFE, aligning regulatory decisions with the government’s policy of reinforcing state-owned energy companies.  

The committee will include officials from SENER’s Electricity and Hydrocarbons undersecretariats and the heads of CNE’s Electricity and Hydrocarbon Units. Additionally, three technical experts, appointed by President Claudia Sheinbaum, will serve staggered four-year terms.  

Unlike its predecessors, CNE will not have budgetary autonomy, as its expenditures will be subject to executive approval. The commission’s meetings are also not explicitly required to be publicly broadcast, raising transparency concerns regarding regulatory decisions.  

Juan Carlos Solís, Head of the Industrial Transformation Policies Unit, SENER, is expected to be appointed as CNE’s Director General, according to El Economista. Although he will participate in Technical Committee meetings, he will not have voting rights.