Study: Mexico Has 22 Terawatts Of Green Hydrogen Potential

Mexico has the potential to install 22 terawatts (TW) of green hydrogen infrastructure, with key areas for development being public transport, power generation and the petrochemical industry, according to a study published last week, Argus Media reported.

The study, com­missioned by the Mexico-Germany Alliance and which German foreign development agency GiZ financed, sought to lay out a blueprint for green hydrogen development across Mexico.

Among the key areas for opportunity, it lists public transport, long-distance cargo vehicles, heavy industry, state oil firm Pemex’s refining and pet­rochemical businesses, and power generation and electricity storage. According to the study, green hydrogen use in Pemex’s downstream business, including refining and ammonia pro­duction, could be worth about $1.3 billion per year by 2030.

Green hydrogen could also power about 1.5 gigawatts of electricity generation capacity by 2050, the study said. However, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has not made the development of renewables a focus of his administration.

Instead, the president has made strengthening energy self-sufficiency a priority. He has introduced legislation that seeks to bolster the state’s role in the fuels market, a move that followed a law that favors CFE over private power generators even though the latter can provide cheaper and cleaner electricity. “The government fully intends to favor energy security over emissions reduction, and that entails using the resources more readily available to [state oil enterprises]: coal and fuel oil.

Companies will be prevent­ed, either through direct barring or market tampering, from accessing and investing in clean energies,” Christian Wagner, Americas analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, told the Energy Advisor in a Q&A published April 16. “This will delay Mexico’s energy transition and hinder its compliance with international climate change commitments,” Wagner added.

By Latin America Energy Advisor

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