Energy

A key sector of the Mexican economy, the energy industry is set to undergo radical changes as a result of the structural reform passed by the government in 2013. The reform will open the nationalised oil industry to foreign investment, allow for open competition in the electricity market, enable private companies to build natural gas pipelines with more freedom, and will give producers of clean energy better access to customers. For the first time in decades, the energy reform is set to break the existing monopolies in the oil and electricity segments. While the government estimates the energy reform will add between 0.5% and 1% to GDP each year between 2014 and 2018, the end of the current administration’s term, this could be an overstatement of the short-term effects of the reform. Other estimates point to a boost to the economy of between 1.5% and 1.7% on average per year from 2017 to 2030, with a lesser benefit in the early years of this period and a larger one later on. This chapter includes interviews with Pedro Joaquín Coldwell, Minister of Energy; and Emilio Lozoya Austin, Director-General, Petróleos Mexicanos (PEMEX).