Mexico. A new photovoltaic energy system was recently inaugurated by Siemens at its Balvanera plant in Querétaro.
The event was attended, along with company executives, the Governor of Queretaro, Mauricio Kuri; the Secretary of Sustainable Development of Querétaro, Marco del Prete Tercero; the Municipal President of Corregidora, Roberto Sosa, and Mauricio Reyes Caracheo, General Director of the Energy Agency in the State, among other personalities.
The Balvanera plant is focused on the manufacture of low and medium voltage boards and switches of this second modality, and has a research and development center. It is one of two that Siemens operates in Querétaro and that now enables renewable energy by installing 1,110 solar panels as part of its Social Responsibility and Sustainability strategy.
Siemens was one of the first large industrial companies to commit to achieving a zero carbon footprint globally by 2030. "To achieve this goal, we will invest around €100 million in energy efficiency projects in our production facilities and buildings. For example, 80% of our German facilities already use 100% green energy, we have reduced our CO2 emissions by 33% since the launch of the program and we have saved 20 thousand euros per year in operating costs from 2020 thanks to our energy efficiency projects such as Balvanera", said Alejandro Preinfalk, President and CEO of Siemens Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
From Siemens' perspective, energy demand represents four key challenges to making an electricity delivery system sustainable: security of supply, affordability, climate protection and resource efficiency.
"Investments in low-carbon technologies increase the competitiveness of our customers and ours. This photovoltaic project is a pioneer in terms of decarbonization in the region. With the installation of the solar panels, which are effectively connected to an existing power substation, around 1,030 megawatts will be generated per year, enhancing the daily activities of the plant", said Marco Cosío, Vice President of Smart Infrastructure at Siemens for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
This project will help Mexico comply with the Energy Transition Law that establishes a minimum participation of 35% of clean energy in electricity generation by 2024. Additionally, with the development of this infrastructure in renewables and the investment that this entails, Siemens contributes to the objective of generating private investment in Querétaro, promoted by the Energy Agency of the entity; Querétaro is one of the states with the greatest development in this area, which has an important influence on its economic and sustainable development.
Among the benefits that the installation will provide to the factory, the reduction of its carbon emissions, will improve its efficiency in the supply of electricity and it is estimated that it will have a significant monthly saving in energy costs, by replacing the one that comes from fossil fuels with solar.
