May 2026 Vol. 81 No. 5
Features
Mexico modernizing domestic transmission, distribution network prior to World Cup
EUGENE GERDEN, CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Mexico is working on the modernization of its power transmission and distribution network with the goal of guaranteeing electricity supply to 50 million users across the country and avoid blackouts during the soccer World Cup 2026 this summer.
As part of these plans, it is building 275 new strategic lines in the national transmission grid and connecting areas far from major cities of the country. The key task is to connect the Baja California peninsula with the rest of the Republic and to improve interconnection of the entire system.
In Mexico, there are currently four transmission networks:
- National transmission network, which covers Sonora to Yucatán
- Los Cabos network, which operates in isolation
- The smaller Mulegé network
- Baja California transmission network, which is considered the most strategic, although it is currently not connected to the national transmission network
The connection of Baja California transmission network to the Mexican national network is considered a priority task by the Mexican authorities. As for Baja California, this is one of Mexico's main nature hubs, and environmental groups have already come out strongly against putting any sort of power plant on the peninsula and even installing overhead transmission lines.
Still, there is a possibility these plans will be implemented this time, despite protests by environmentalists who believe that building underground infrastructure is unreasonable, which is mainly due to the risks of flooding.
Prior to 2024, when Claudia Sheinbaum was elected Mexico’s president, a lack of investment in transmission and distribution left the Mexican national electricity system in a poor state. This resulted in blackouts that affected several major cities, such as Mérida and Monterrey, impacting both the local population and industry.
The latest of such blackouts took place in September 2025 when power was knocked out to more than two million customers in three states in southeast Mexico, after a problem with a transmission line. That affected Yucatan, Campeche and Quintana Roo states. The biggest concerns, however, were related with Quintana Roo, which is home to Mexico's leading tourism industry, including Cancun and Tulum, along the Caribbean coast.
The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) began constructing underground distribution systems during the 1960s. In the 1980s, particular attention was paid to building underground networks in high-end tourist, commercial and residential developments of the country.
CFE: SHIFTING PRIORITIES
In contrast to previous years, priority now will be given for building underground infrastructure despite generally higher costs compared to overhead power lines. That is largely being driven due to tightening of the local legislation regulating building of such objects.
For example, the authorities in Mexico City recently approved a telecommunications and broadcasting law that requires telecommunications companies to remove disused overhead cables and bury their infrastructure. The same rules generally apply to transmission infrastructure. This measure seeks to improve the image of the city, reduce risks and protect telecommunications and electricity services from natural phenomena.
Besides Mexico City, the authorities of many large cities are giving preference for the establishment of underground electricity infrastructure, replacing overhead lines by their underground analogues. Earlier such replacements were completed in Cancun. According to recent statements from local authorities, these measures were mainly taken due to the issues of public safety and providing guarantees electricity is not affected during hurricane season or any other situation.
The same works were ongoing in Isla Mujeres, where the local Mayor Atenea Gómez Ricalde said the downtown area is the first in a series of phases to modernize the overhead lines to an underground electrical system. At the same time, these projects will not be done in areas with greater vulnerability to storm surge and flooding, where priority will continue to be given to overhead infrastructure.
Despite these improvements, the technical condition of the Mexican transmission and distribution networks has regularly sparked criticism from local public representatives and analysts. Most of them called on the more active expansion and modernization of the existing infrastructure, paying particular attention to the improvement of its interconnection.
Such regular criticism has forced the federal government to accelerate heir activities in this field. For this purpose, last August, a Mexican government commission announced an investment of $8.177 billion for the modernization of transmission infrastructure and, earlier, $3.6 billion for distribution. While these are significant steps forward, questions remain as to whether they will be sufficient to meet the existing needs.
As the Mexican Energy Secretary Luz Elena González Escobar earlier explained, the entire plan involves building new transmission lines, the construction of electric substations and the establishment of electrical compensators for greater electricity distribution coverage. Mexico has more than 68,350 miles (111,000) kilometers of transmission network and more than 1,300 electrical substations, but thanks to planned investments, 4,185 miles (6,735-kilometers) of new strategic lines and 524 new electrical substations will be built.
A significant part of them will be located underground primarily those that will be built within major cities and tourism hotspots of the country. At the same time, some lines will be located underwater, as in the case of the Playa del Carmen-Chankanaab II project. It involves construction of a high-voltage transmission line with an underwater section between Playa del Carmen and Cozumel, in a move to ensure stable power supply to the island of Cozumel.
It is expected that successful implementation of the project will bring electricity to more than 500,000 homes.
MODERN TECH
“The planned investment will involve the use of state-of-the-art technologies,” said Mexican spokesman González Escobar. “This is very important because we will also modernize the existing infrastructure to reduce losses and load at the most critical points of the country’s transmission and distribution network."
Of the total projects, 92 will be built in the northern part of the country, 49 in the central region and 30 in the south. Efforts will also be made to strengthen development of hubs and industrial corridors.
Implementation of the project will contribute to strengthening Mexican energy sovereignty, which is a priority goal for the country’s present administration. Last April, Sheinbaum announced an investment of 624.618 billion pesos (US$33.3 billion) to achieve energy self-sufficiency amidst U.S. protectionism. The investment, which will be conducted during the current administration (2024-2030) and includes generation, transmission and distribution projects, as part of the 18 points presented by the Mexican President to respond to the tariff policy of the US.
The federal government estimates that, thanks to the planned expansion, the overall capacity of the National Electricity System will reach 103,891 MW in 2030 and grow another 122,866 MW by 2039, with more than 50 percent coming from clean sources.
According to the latest data from the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness (IMCO), between 2018 and 2024 the National Transmission Network grew by only 2.4 percent, increasing from 67,120 miles (108,017 km) to 68,700 miles (110,559 km), according to data from the Ministry of Energy (Sener). The growth in 2025 was also minimal.
So far, the network has been facing a critical overload in parts of the country, primarily in the southern and northern regions, mainly due to the lack of expansion and modernization. However, the planned expansion and modernization is expected to help solve those problems.
This is despite the fact that most analysts believe the allocated funds will be insufficient to renew the transmission network, while the overall volume of investments, which is required for successful implementation of these targets, should reach at least US$40 billion.
This is especially important given that the electricity demand in the country is steadily growing. According to data from Sener, the electricity demand within the National Interconnected System (SIN) has increased by approximately 3.5 percent in the last two years. Forecasts for 2026-2038 indicate that electricity consumption will grow by 2.4 percent in the base scenario, and by 2.8 percent annually in a high-growth scenario.
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