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Q: What sets SOWITEC apart from other renewable energy developers? A: SOWITEC has excellent technicians who can analyze everything related to field development, including geographical studies that use advanced drone technology, electrical engineering, environmental studies and anthropological research. What sets SOWITEC apart from the competition is its team’s passion for the work it delivers. We are a developer company highly recognized for the collaboration that we have had with multinationals such as Santander, ENGIE or Enel. Since we started working in Mexico in 2008, we have always demonstrated our enthusiasm for renewable energy. We are committed and will continue our work in this sector, despite the challenging times it is going through. Q: How did the company adapt to the challenging times of 2020? A: Three months into 2020, we all had to adapt by working remotely. SOWITEC has projects in ejidos, where you need to hold assemblies to keep in touch and comply with contractual arrangements. It was difficult to extend payments on time, which was usually done in personal meetings. Interestingly, ejido owners were quite understanding of the situation;
Alejandra Domínguez
nevertheless, SOWITEC makes every effort to fully comply with its agreements and contracts. As a project developer, we also have a specialized team that
Managing Director | SOWITEC
works in the field. It explores potential development sites, which you cannot do if travel is not possible and there are no places to stay overnight. For this reason, we were not able to achieve our objectives for 2020. Also, the Mexican government also shut its doors due to the pandemic. Entities
Large Projects Hibernate While Small PPA Projects Gain Traction
such as CRE, CENACE, SENER and SEMARNAT did not issue permits during this time. This caused a delay in all of our objectives, since working remotely with them was challenging. This continued even after they re-opened. Furthermore, the government has taken on the mission to strengthen PEMEX and CFE, and has initiated various measures toward that goal. These have affected our operations in a major way. For example, generation permits are not easy to obtain at the moment. Even applying for a permit is a challenge, meaning that planning and financing projects is somewhat out of the question. SEMARNAT took a long time in reopening its offices. Furthermore, it has federal mandates dictating that it should focus on non-renewable energy projects. As a result, obstacles have piled up for the renewables sector. I consider the pandemic to be an important impediment but we have also seen that the government has taken advantage of the situation to create new regulations that slow down renewable energy development in Mexico. Even after certain government entities opened up, the slowdown continued. Despite the pandemic’s far-reaching effects, we believe the government has had a stronger influence in this crisis. Q: What is the main issue the company faces when its employees are not able to travel?
