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Riding Solar and Wind Power Opportunities

Patricia Tatto - ATA Renewables
Partner and Country Head of Mexico and Central America

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Wed, 02/21/2018 - 16:24

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Given Mexico’s privileged amount of solar irradiation hours and plunging international prices, both for manufacturing costs and the rates obtained during the first three longterm electricity auctions, solar has a great opportunity to move ahead in the country's renewable energy race, says Patricia Tatto, Partner and Country Head of Mexico and Central America at ATA Renewables. “We anticipate solar will take the lead in Mexico’s renewables sector as it is less complex to develop and has lower costs.”

The potential is already there, she adds. “There are various ways of doing business in Mexico in the renewable energy mix. But wind and solar have proved to have great potential.” Wind power in particular has developed at a faster pace given its longer track record and large projects in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Tamaulipas and soon Yucatan. In the case of solar power, “developing a solar project is possible virtually anywhere in Mexico because we have good irradiation hours and plenty of solar resource across the country, especially in the northern and central nodes.” 

ATA Renewables, a Spanish energy group that offers engineering, advisory, certification and market intelligence services, has a global installed capacity of more than 21GW. “We see many opportunities regarding technology for both wind and solar power,” says Tatto. She says ATA Renewables has also identified potential in energy storage given Mexico’s geography and resources should bolster the use of this technology, especially for non-interconnected systems. “In the meantime, a number of battery-operated storage facilities will be needed,” she says. “When batteries become more accessible due to falling prices, more of these projects will see the light. We expect this to happen soon.”

Most of ATA Renewables’ clients are banks, investment funds, developers and EPCs but the company also advises governments and utilities for special projects. Tatto says commercial banks are still struggling to enter the market because they do not fully understand yet how to assess market risk. “Banks have become even more cautious and 
ask for extra guarantees to justify investment.” To counter this, ATA Renewables offers advice to customers regarding their potential investments in project development, providing recommendations from the technical-financial point of view. Tatto underlines that companies must have clear and understandable financial models and developers must comply with all the environmental and social requirements and assure the bank that permits will be obtained on time to secure financial closing as well as the contracts. 

Finding and retaining skilled labor is another key to success. “Since our arrival in 2013, our team has grown and we have invested heavily on local human capital from the very beginning, training employees and putting them in close contact with researchers and associations.” Tatto explains that this strategy has provided ATA Renewables with a highly specialized Mexican workforce that understands the country’s requirements. 

Mexico has many talented students and professionals, Tatto says, but the pace of industrial growth is overwhelming, creating a talent gap that must be filled. “The country is slowly but surely working on this,” she says. “The associations and the industry have created projects, programs and funds together with many universities to overcome this gap.” For instance, Tatto takes part in the Women in Renewable Energy Mexico (MERM) association, which links academic institutions and industry. “Students can gain hands-on experience and knowledge through industrial visits, lectures, workshops and other initiatives,” she says. 

Going forward, ATA Renewables would like to introduce other business units to the country, including its certifications division CERES, but Tatto says the company’s involvement in the Mexican market will be parallel to its growth pace. “Mexico is a second home for ATA and we want to have a prime position here,” she says. “Because of its special role as a bridge between Central and South America and Europe, we consider Mexico a strategic headquarters.” 

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