Mexico faces an apparent energy paradox. While the country is accelerating calls for bids to incorporate new generation capacity and meet the expected growth in demand, its installed capacity exceeds 96 GW compared to peak consumption of around 57 GW , according to Gilberto Sánchez, president of the National Solar Energy Association (ANES).
The difference is around 39 GW , but that doesn't mean all that power is available simultaneously or located where it's needed. For Sánchez, the main challenge lies in the infrastructure required to deliver electricity to the points of consumption.
“There is sufficient generation capacity. There is an operating reserve margin. The real challenge lies in the infrastructure to introduce that energy into the distribution circuits (capacity in MVA) due to the excess demand from both domestic users and companies that demand more than contracted,” said the president of ANES during the webinar prior to Intersolar Mexico 2026.
The diagnosis introduces a relevant discussion at a time when Mexico is seeking to mobilize several additional gigawatts of electricity investment to support industrialization, electrification, and renewable expansion.
The debate will be one of the central themes of Intersolar Mexico 2026 , which will take place from September 1 to 3 at Centro Citibanamex, Mexico City , and where Energía Estratégica will be present providing journalistic coverage.
More generation, but also more flexibility
The assessment of the networks does not imply that Mexico can halt the addition of new capacity. On the contrary, the system is preparing for increased demand associated with industrial development, the electrification of transportation, new logistics centers, data centers, and other production processes .
Meanwhile, the country is experiencing a resurgence in investment. Recent developments include the mixed scheme implemented by the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), which awarded approximately 7,410 MW , while the Ministry of Energy maintains an additional portfolio of 6,754 MW that it seeks to allocate during 2026. This latter volume comprises 4,595 MW of solar and concentrated solar power and 2,159 MW of wind power.
Within that portfolio, the second private call for approximately 3.9 GW of solar and wind projects is currently underway, reinforcing the magnitude of the pipeline that seeks to be incorporated into the Mexican system.
“ These calls for priority projects and mixed investments have generated significant international dynamism and interest; at ANES we receive many inquiries from abroad ,” Sánchez highlighted.
However, the leader avoids predicting definitive results. Effective implementation will determine whether the new scheme succeeds in transforming interest into operational capacity.
“ At the beginning of next year we will see the consolidation of these initial calls for proposals, and that will be the first real indicator of how well we are doing ,” he predicted.
The question, therefore, is no longer simply how many megawatts to add . Location, availability, transmission and distribution capacity, and flexibility now determine how much value that new power can bring.
For Yolanda Villegas , president of the Mexican Association of Storage, Electrification and Mobility (AMAEM), this change is already modifying the questions that the industry itself is asking.
“The first thing that changed is that we moved from thinking about how many megawatts we are generating and how many we need to install, but the question now is different, that is: How do we make all the energy that we have available at this moment and in the place where it is needed have a better interaction with the national electrical system?” he asked.
The answer places energy storage in a strategic position. The expansion of photovoltaics and wind power adds variable generation capacity, while growing demand necessitates managing when electricity is produced, stored, and consumed .
According to the president of AMAEM, it would also be a mistake to analyze batteries solely as a complement to renewable energy sources. Backup power, rapid response, peak demand control, grid services, and industrial operational continuity considerably broaden their scope of application.
The new scenario also requires regulations capable of transforming technological deployment into bankable projects. Administrative provisions for storage began operating on April 16, 2026 , according to Villegas, although she believes there is still room to develop a “second tier” of regulations.
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The framework includes different modalities: storage associated with load centers, self-consumption, power plants, independent systems, infrastructure linked to transmission or distribution, and grouped systems.
For AMAEM, therefore, the investment decision can no longer begin simply by choosing a battery . First, it must be determined under what modality the asset will operate, what economic problem it will solve, and how the authority will implement the new regulations.
The new Electricity Sector Law also represents a change for the solar industry, because it incorporates storage as an activity of the sector , something that Sánchez identifies as a relevant modification for the next phase of renewable expansion.
Electrification changes the profile of demand
Mexico is experiencing a simultaneous advance in electrification. Public transportation, logistics fleets, private vehicles, buildings, and industrial processes will add new loads to the electrical system , some with profiles very different from the traditional ones.
“ We are electrifying everything. We have electrification in transportation, in industrial processes, in buildings, in economic activities, and all of this will generate new and different demand profiles and an electricity demand that we will not be able to consolidate without storage ,” Villegas warned.
The National Electric System Development Program (PRODESEN), as highlighted by the specialist during the meeting, anticipates that 96% of the capacity additions developed by private entities between 2025 and 2030 will come from renewable sources .
The challenge will be to ensure that this new power can be integrated where and when the system requires it. For this reason, Villegas summarizes the current state of the Mexican energy sector as a “system of definitions,” in which it will be necessary to determine the extent to which energy storage will be incorporated and whether mixed contracts will be attractive enough to support industrial growth.
Distributed generation exceeds 5 GW and enters another stage
Decentralization is another component of this transformation. Mexico ended the year with approximately 5,000 MW of distributed generation , within a total solar capacity that Sánchez places at around 14,000 MW , including some 9,000 MW of large-scale projects.
Marco Antonio Guzmán , president of the Mexican Association of the Photovoltaic Industry (AMIF), also estimates that there are already about 600,000 distributed generation projects installed.
The market, however, is entering a second phase. Simply installing more systems is no longer enough: quality, safety, storage, professionalization, and adaptation of the electrical infrastructure are becoming increasingly important.
For Sánchez, the solar opportunities of the coming years will not be restricted to the volume of panels. “ The real qualitative leap of the coming years lies in flexibility and decentralization ,” he stated.
The president of ANES identifies three major opportunities: industrial self-consumption, collective or community-based distributed generation, and solar thermal . Energy storage appears across the board as a technology capable of expanding renewable integration without shifting all the pressure onto the grid.
Distributed generation could also become a competitive tool for industries that need cost certainty and continuity of supply.
Villegas argues that a new plant being considered for installation in Mexico needs to answer three questions: whether it will have sufficient electricity, whether it will be reliable, and how much it will cost over the next few years .
The combination of photovoltaics and batteries allows producing part of the supply at the point of consumption, storing surpluses, reducing peaks and having backup in case of contingencies.
The executive mentions the hotel sector as a reference, where certain storage systems could reduce electricity billing by up to 40% , along with peak shaving and load shifting strategies.
This intersection of infrastructure, regulation, and investment will be part of the agenda for Intersolar Mexico 2026 , which will bring together key players in the solar and storage sectors between September 1 and 3 .
The event is part of The smarter E regional calendar, which will first be held as The smarter E South America from August 25-27, 2026, at Expo Center Norte, São Paulo . Energía Estratégica will be present, providing coverage of both events and closely following the challenges facing the two largest electricity markets in Latin America.