Due to government policies towards the sector, Mexico lags behind in the wind and solar energy race in Latam

In Latin America, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico are the leaders in solar and wind energy with large installed wind farms, the capacity of all these countries exceeds 57 Gigawatts (GW), however, although most of these countries continue to drive the development of these renewables, Mexico has stagnated, says the Global Energy Monitor report.

"Even if all potential projects were to come online, the country would only reach approximately 70% of its commitment to deliver 40 GW of wind and solar power by 2030," the report says.

It highlights that Mexico was a leader for large-scale wind and solar development between 2013 and 2021, however, amendments to the national energy policy in May 2021 discouraged forecasts for these renewables.

According to the report, the top countries in large-scale solar and wind farms currently in operation are:

1. Brazil - 27 GW
2. Mexico - 20 GW
3. Chile - 10 GW
4. Argentina - 5 GW
5. Uruguay - 2 GW

"The three regional leaders owe steady large-scale wind and solar growth to well-established energy auctions, transparency of private investment, the economic potential of green hydrogen exports, declining costs of solar and wind installations, and policy responses to climate change," he says.

Although Mexico, is in the second position 2 with installed capacity, already in the forecasts of new large-scale solar and wind power capacity additions for 2030, it remains in the last position.

1. Brazil - 217 GW
2. Chile - 38 GW
3. Colombia - 37 GW
4. Peru - 10 GW
5. Mexico - 7 GW

The Global Energy Monitor report notes that Brazil, Chile and Colombia, are the main countries in the future wind and solar outlook in Latin America, as they are seeing a steady growth in the increase of potential projects.

He adds that in the case of Mexico, since 2021, the pro-fossil fuel policies of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's administration have slowed the growth of renewables.

The above explains why Mexico could not keep up with the large-scale solar and wind energy growth rates of Brazil, Chile and Colombia.

"The trend of leaving halted renewable energy projects uncompleted, stalled or cancelled (a total of 11.6 GW) exemplifies the difficult development conditions in the country, including legal challenges and delays in project approvals," the report notes.

Latin America has the potential to increase its large-scale solar and wind power capacity by more than 460% by 2030, provided that the 319 gigawatts GW of potential new projects in the region become operational.