According to the report of the Institute of Legal Research of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, prepared by engineer Carlos Ulises López Chávez, distributed generation is an important complement to reduce consumption through energy efficiency practices, load control and intelligent use of peak periods of the networks.

“Although solar energy could not be the solution absolutely, it is a potential option in the energy range, which could be complemented with other generation alternatives,” says the specialist.

The study seeks to expose relevant points of the long-term investments of solar power generation and investigate their benefits.

The main virtues are the highly convenient investment returns they offer. Rooftop solar systems allow you to acquire electricity for a period of at least 25 years, generating 80% of the energy generated.

One of the most convenient rates is the DAC, because of its high cost and because it is the real price of energy, without the government subsidy.

The investment for these high-consumption residential projects could range from $ 30,000 MXN and increase according to the user’s need. In this way, you would start receiving cheaper bills and, in the best case, only pay the fixed charge.

The advantage of these systems is that, due to the high cost of their rates, the investment of the solar system compared to the energy savings would be recovered in terms of approximately 4 years, this means that, of the 25 years guaranteed, the user would end up with at least 21 years of free energy.

In addition, one of the benefits granted by the FISCO is the deduction of 100% of the investment in the first year, conditioned to keep the equipment in operation for at least 5 years. This means that even with the low investment returns that can be handled in these investments, the time of their amortization can be further reduced, thanks to the benefits of the deduction of this product.

It should also be noted that in Mexico there are already private banks that extend their hand to this type of technology and can become a viable financing option.

There are also other options such as FIDE credits (Trust for the Saving of Electric Energy) granted by the CFE, which since 2013 have provided credits to 2,044 solar roof projects and installed a total of 16 MW, managing an interest rate accessible to the client.

There is also the program called FOTEASE (Fund for the Energy Transition and the Sustainable Use of Energy) that gives users a support of 10% of the investment to non-repayable and the rest is managed by the fiduciary.

Conclusion

Despite the low price of solar energy, the financing options and the great opportunities it gives the country, the foundations must be established to be able to further deploy the industry and advance in the long-awaited energy transition.

According to the report, although in Mexico there are regions such as Sonora and Baja California where there is optimal radiation for the development of these projects, Mexico has great limitations in transmission capacity.

The government needs to invest in improving the country’s infrastructure with the aim of further boosting the PV industry and meeting the decarbonization goals set out in the Paris Agreement.