Mexico has decided to scrap some hydropower projects that are opposed by the population, namely the 900 MW La Parota dam project in Guerrero, the 540 MW Paso de la Reina in Oaxaca and the Boca del Cerro dam in Chiapas. The 240 MW Chicoasén II dam project, which is already under construction, will be completed and should be commissioned in 2021. Mexico will not build any new dam and will rather focus on modernising the existing ones, by replacing turbines with larger or more efficient ones.
Hydropower capacities in Mexico exceed 12 GW (2018) and they account for around 10% of the country's power generation. In 2018, the newly elected president announced plans to boost the hydropower capacity operated by state-owned power utility Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE), by investing up to US$1.2bn by 2028 to increase the efficiency of existing hydropower plants and up to US$1.9bn to build new dams by 2025. In addition, he expected private companies to invest up to US$6.3bn to build mini-hydropower plants until 2030.
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