IMCO urges government to speed up electricity investments
Mexican think tank IMCO said the government must speed up investments over the next five years as the electricity demand is expected to grow 13.4% by the end of this decade, with an additional pressure to reconfigure its energy matrix and generate 45% from renewable or clean sources. “In recent years, there has been underinvestment in the electricity sector’s infrastructure,” according to a recently published research report. CFE only installed 11,620 MW between 2019 and the first half of 2024, 24.5% of the capacity installed compared to the 2013-2018 period, according to IMCO. “This drop in investment in generation infrastructure has resulted in an even more stressed electrical system, which, on the one hand, is exposed during peak demand and, on the other, jeopardizes the viability of new investments in high-demand regions such as the north and the Bajío,” said the report.
The think tank forecasts that Mexico’s electricity demand will grow 13.4% between 2025 and 2030, above the official estimates. President Sheinbaum’s administration expects to install 29,074 MW over the next five years, which could be enough to cover the growth in demand forecast by IMCO, according to the analysis. However, the main concern is that projects must start developing this year as building such a large new capacity, equivalent to 32.7% of the current one, will take years. “By 2030, the electricity system is estimated to require 410,800 GWh. If new projects are not developed rapidly and brought online on time, this would imply a deficit of 48,452 GWh compared to current generation capacity,” according to IMCO estimates.
The Sheinbaum administration pledged that CFE would invest US$22.4 bn to install 78% of the expected new capacity over the next five years, with the private-sector companies spending between US$6 to 9 bn in the same period, according to IMCO. However, to achieve the administration’s most ambitious target of a 45% share of renewable energies by 2030, the system would need around US$67 bn in new investments during the next five years, according to the analysis. CFE expects to invest around US$6.4 bn in transmission lines over the next five years, which could be helpful to boost new clean energy generation capacity.
CP Latina’s results impacted by Pemex’s woes
The temporary suspension of work asked by state-owned company Pemex, which started in late 2024 and continued this year, hit the results of drilling oil company CP Latina. Pemex requested a 50-day suspension on one of the two rigs leased by CP Latina. The suspension on rig La Covadonga lasted from December 26 to February 2025; the platform resumed activities drilling exploratory well Koos-1. CP Latina revenues fell to US$17 mn in 1Q25 from US$27.1m in 1Q24. Meanwhile, EBITDA stumbled 61% year-over-year. The company reached an agreement with Pemex on some of the unpaid invoices, allowing the company to collect US$ 96.2 mn between the end of 2024 and the beginning of this year – though it came at a cost. “Latina and Pemex had a constructive dialogue that resulted in collections from Pemex of outstanding invoices through a receivables financing vehicle that had a commission close to 10%. Collections allowed to provide payments to the bonds principal amount by US$ 21.7 mn”, according to the company’s financial report.
CP Latina leases two jack-up rigs, Santa Maria and Covadonga to Pemex. These rigs were operating in the shallow-water offshore fields Akal and Yaxche. The Santa Maria rig kept working during this period in Akal, and the company signed a contract extension with Pemex, which originally ended on April 12, and now will finish in January 2026. The extension comes with a day rate reduction from US $155,200 to US$140,200 per day. “The Covadonga agreement was signed in January 2025 extending the contract term till October 28th, 2025, with an adjusted day rate of US$129,200”, according to the company.
In other energy news…
- Congress should reconsider exempting state-owned companies Pemex and CFE from antitrust oversight under the government’s proposed regulatory overhaul, the International Chamber of Commerce Mexico said. The bill is still pending congressional review. The current proposal would allow Pemex and CFE to avoid being labeled as monopolies.
- The Energy Ministry and Pemex officials met with 60 energy companies to explain the government’s plan for 34 PPA projects. Market sources said they are still waiting for more details as the authorities must issue the rules to apply the recently approved energy reform, including the legal framework for the mixed contracts with Pemex.
- Pemex plans to save about MXN 4.8bn (US$250 mn) through a restructuring aimed at vertically integrating the company. Pemex expects to save MXN 3.53bn in 2025 and MXN 1.3bn in 2026 by eliminating positions deemed redundant under the new structure. This includes cutting unneeded jobs in marketing, planning, human capital, costs and service contracting, with the goal of improving operational efficiency, the company said. A draft of the plan reviewed by Pemex’s board this month proposed laying off nearly 3,000 non-unionized employees — about 2.2% of its roughly 130,000 workers — and projected MXN 10.5bn in total savings. But the announcement today said the layoffs would represent only 1.4% of the non-unionized workforce. Unionized workers — 95,140 of Pemex’s employees — will not be affected.
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