Why is the TX blackout affecting Mexico? Mexico’s electricity is produced mainly with natural gas (60%), and close to 70% is imported from the US through pipelines. Mx decided to import as opposed to invest in its own gas fields because..

TX gas is cheaper, PEMEX is betting on oil extraction, Mx banned fracking, and current admon cancelled new bidding rounds in the gas rich Burgos basin. in sum, MX is gas dependent but its not doing anything to produce it’s own gas.

To make things worst what could help Mexico is to balance its grid with an increase in cheaper and reliable sources, such as wind and solar. That started with private producers with the energy reform in 2013, but new administration paralyzed permits and

is proposing new legislation to reinstate state-owned company, CFE, monopoly over electricity production. Problem again, CFE’s production is heavily fossil fuel based. Gas is not available in MX, and the other two sources, oil and coal, are expensive plus oil production is down.

My take is that MX & US missed the opportunity in the USMCA to address the fact that we have an energy integrated region. We could be solving common challenges like climate change, energy efficiency, and diversification in a coordinated way. instead we have binational blackouts