Mexico’s Puebla state rolls out plan to become electromobility hub

Puebla state in south-central Mexico is seeking to become the country’s first electromobility hub by installing almost 100 new electric vehicle (EV) charging points with help from the private sector.

This plan will require authorities to issue a tender “in the coming months,” Ermilo Barrera Novelo, state the Puebla's energy agency director, said Tuesday during a webinar organized by MOVE, a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) initiative aimed at accelerating the transition to electric mobility in Latin America and the Caribbean.

“The general objective and the macro vision of our administration is to position the state as an electromobility hub at international level, a hub where investment is welcome,” Barrera added.

In June 2022, Puebla became the first state in the country to launch a public policy to begin deploying EV charging infrastructure. The document can be seen here, in Spanish. 

According to the policy, the main objective is to install 10 rapid chargers on six important highways and 89 level 1 and 2 chargers in municipalities throughout the state. 

For this year, however, the goal is to install a total of 43 chargers, which will double the state’s EV charging infrastructure.

“There are already two electrified highways. We're going to electrify four highways between now and next year, and two highways will be electrified this year,” Barrera said.

While the idea is to promote 8.3bn pesos (U$482mn) in private sector investments, the agency will also provide 2.5bn pesos to fund the strategy. 

“We're about to launch a tender process in the coming months to award chargers for electric vehicles in public spaces, in other spaces with partnerships, municipalities and with the state government so that the private sector joins in,” he said. 

Puebla is one of the states where the central government is trying to attract investments in the automotive sector. Two giants of the industry already operate in Puebla, Volkswagen and Audi. 

The full webinar can be seen here.