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| (Courtesy CIA.gov) |
Mexico's energy ministry had issued 24 exploration permits and six production permits for geothermal energy as of last week.
Production permits have been issued for the 570 MW Cerro Prieto plant, which provides 40% of the electricity of Baja California state, the 10 MW Tres Virgenes plant also in Baja California, the 225 MW Los Azufres and the 80.4 MW Los Humeros fields. All four are held by federal utility CFE.
The 35 MW Domo San Pedro plant was developed by Grupo Dragón, while an additional permit has been issued for CFE's 25 MW Cerritos Colorados project in Jalisco.
Mexico currently has 920 MW of geothermal capacity and the ministry expects an additional 750 MW by 2029. Of that, 100 MW will come from the Volcán Ceburuco field in Michoacán and 75 MW from Cerritos Colorados. There are also plans to expand the capacity of some existing fields, principally Cerro Prieto by 100 MW, Los Humeros by 54 MW, Domo San Pedro by 50 MW and Los Azufres by 25 MW.
Of the 24 exploration permits, five have been issued for the state of Jalisco, four each for Michoacán, Nayarit and Baja California, three for Puebla, two for Guanajuato, one for Baja California Sur and one for Chiapas.