Mexico on track to beat 2021 distributed generation additions

Mexican households and companies installed 276MW of new distributed generation capacity during the first half of 2022, according to the latest data from energy regulator CRE.

Mexico now has 2.31GW of distributed generation in operation from 300,624 interconnection contracts, the watchdog said.

That means Mexico has installed during the first half of the year 57% of the total capacity it added in 2021, putting it on track to grow additions for the fifth consecutive year. However, even if this year's trend is extended, the country would be far from the government’s goal, laid it in its long-term strategy Prodesen, of adding 700MW/y over the next half-decade.

In regional terms, Jalisco state leads the national tally with 350MW installed, followed by Nuevo León (248MW), Chihuahua (155MW), Mexico state (136MW) and Guanajuato (134MW). The states with the lowest capacity are Tlaxcala (3.75MW), Campeche (13.2MW) and Chiapas (14.7MW). Projects are concentrated in central western Mexico and in the country's north.

Renewable projects below 0.5MW capacity are classified as distributed generation and access a different set of rules than large-scale units. Their permitting process is also easier, which has led many small and medium-sized companies to invest in the power source.