Tesla will install a plant in northern Mexico, agrees to address water shortages

the american Tesla will install a plant “very big” in the north of Mexico and has pledged to address the problem of water scarcity in the area, the country’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said on Tuesday, announcing an expected investment from the electric vehicle maker.

The president confirmed that he spoke the day before with the executive director of Tesla, Elon Musk, as reported by Reuters, and they reached an agreement, after he had said that he would not grant permits to build a factory in the northern state of Nuevo León due to the problems of lack of water.

“We talked yesterday (Monday) with Mr. Elon Musk, director of Tesla, and there is already an understanding: they are going to dedicate the investment to Mexico and the plant will be established in Monterrey,” said the president, referring to the capital of Nuevo León, located about 250 kilometers from the border with the United States.

López Obrador also explained that Tesla assumed “a series of commitments to face the problem of water scarcity” in the area. “They are going to help in this regard,” he explained. In addition, he ruled out that subsidies will be given to the firm for batteries and semiconductors.

The president had shown his preference for the center or the southeast of Mexico as a destination for the investment of the automotive company and had used various factors, such as the high availability of water in those territories or the proximity to a new airport that serves the capital.

The president’s interference has been seen by analysts as a bad sign for the country to benefit from “nearshoring” at a time when Mexico has emerged as an alternative for the installation of factories near the United States.

According to the official, the US firm will report on Wednesday about its plans for Mexico, the same day that the company celebrates an annual event with investors, Tesla’s 2023 Investor Day, and more details about the commitments reached will be known in the following days.

TESLA ANNOUNCEMENT

the american company Teslaof the tycoon Elon Muskwill install an electric car plant in the city of Monterrey (north), announced Tuesday the president of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

The president said he sealed the agreement on Monday after a phone conversation with Musk, in which the company director promised to consider the problems of water scarcity facing the state of Nuevo León, whose capital is Monterrey.

“This is going to mean a considerable investment and many jobs” assured López Obrador and indicated that the amounts will be announced on Wednesday.

The leftist president was emphatic on the issue of water, a chronic problem in states in the north of the country such as Nuevo León, whose authorities were forced to ration the supply due to a prolonged drought last year.

Musk “He was very respectful and attentive and understood the importance of addressing the problem of water scarcity (…) with the use of recycled water, water treatment even for car paint,” commented.

López Obrador, who revealed that he had already had a first talk with the magnate last Friday, had publicly raised the possibility that the plant would be established in another region of the country with greater availability of the resource.

For now “The battery thing was pending.” but “I am satisfied with what was achieved.” said the president, announcing that the automotive plant “It’s going to be very big.”

Source: AFP