• The El Carmen combined cycle plant, in Nuevo León, required an investment of US$ 450 million
• During the construction, 4 thousand jobs were created and 63% of the purchases went to Mexican companies
Mexico City, September 26, 2019.- Today, Iberdrola México announced the commercial commissioning of its El Carmen combined cycle power plant, located in the El Carmen municipality in the state of Nuevo León, and the first to be earmarked for selling to industrial customers in the Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM).
El Carmen has an installed capacity of 866 megawatts (MW) and the most modern gas turbines in Mexico, which will allow to supply very affordable, reliable, and environmentally friendly energy to its industrial customers. The electricity generated by this power plant will be equivalent to supplying one million Mexicans.
“El Carmen is a great example of the fact that the joint effort between the government and private sector is key to secure the availability of competitive energy throughout the country,” said Enrique Alba, CEO of Iberdrola México.
“With an investment of nearly US$450 million, this power plant will enable the improvement of the Mexican industry competitiveness, while developing its industrial fabric due to its high domestic content, creating quality local jobs, and helping many Mexicans with the social projects carried out during the construction period”, he added.
The commissioning of this combined cycle plant – the first one designed to meet the Mexican industry’s energy needs under the Wholesale Electricity Market – is part of Iberdrola México’s new development strategy oriented to sell electricity to industrial customers.
Built next to the Escobedo combined cycle plant (its twin plant that started commercial operations in January 2019), El Carmen will supply power to one hundred industrial groups in the automotive, chemical, metallurgical, cement and textile sectors.
Sixty-three percent of the purchases for this power plant were made to Mexican companies. In addition, gas supply for this plant will be provided by CFEnergía, an affiliate of the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), with which Iberdrola México signed a 24 -year US$ 4,800 million contract.
The El Carmen construction involved considerable economic revenues for the region, not only the creation of over 4,000 jobs together with Escobedo, but also purchases to local suppliers, thus boosting the industrial fabric of the region.
Furthermore, as part of its commitment to the wellbeing of the communities where it operates, Iberdrola México carried out several social projects, including the construction of a health center in the colonia Buena Vista, which will service more than 15 thousand Mexicans, and the implementation of a program of reforestation of approximately 100 hectares.
Last May, Iberdrola endorsed its commitment to Mexico, one of the group’s five strategic countries worldwide, announcing a US$5 billion investment to build new renewable energy and gas power plants during the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
