Electric vehicle momentum picking up in Mexico with new investments

The BMW Group and Evergo will invest US$200mn to install more than 4,000 public electric vehicle charging stations in and around Mexico City in the next five years.

Evergo will build the stations, while BMW will promote their use through the sale of electric cars.

They will be deployed in and next to shopping malls, industrial complexes, offices, and on highways, Mexican press reported the companies as saying.

The stations’ power supply will initially come from federal utility CFE, which generates roughly 60% of its electricity through thermal sources, and at a later stage the energy will come from renewable sources.

For that, the two firms plan to build a solar park with battery storage capacity, press reported without specific project details.

Earlier this month, electric vehicle manufacturer Cenntro Automotive said it would invest US$200mn to produce lithium-ion batteries in the state of Nuevo León.

The company is looking to sell its Metro, Logistar 100, Logistar 200 and Logistar 260 vehicles to businesses and transportation firms.

The “Three Amigos” summit earlier this month left new commitments in the electric vehicle space, with Mexico, Canada and the US pledging to develop common standards for charging stations. The Mexican government has also made a zero-emission pledge for all cars sold locally from 2040.

Mexico's US$48bn plan Sonora is aimed at turning Nuevo León into an electric vehicle production hub, as well as a cross-border supplier of clean energy.