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Infrastructure market in Mexico

Industry highlights

Can$8.17 billion

Canadian exports to Mexico in 2021

4.1 million

Jobs in Mexico’s Infrastructure sector

7.4%

Infrastructure contribution to Mexico’s GDP

Can$18.3 billion

Expected investment in Infrastructure in 2021

Canada and Mexico are strategic trade and​investment partners.​

Key opportunities for Canadian infrastructure companies in Mexico

Notable challenges for Canadian infrastructure companies in Mexico

Mexico’s business landscape

The construction industry in Mexico expanded by 7.2% in real terms in 2021, following a sharp contraction of 17.6% in 2020. The industry's growth last year was supported by an improvement in the domestic economy, the re-opening of key industries, and progress in the country's vaccination drive. This year, the construction industry is expected to continue expanding.

Mexico has announced interesting infrastructure projects at the federal and state levels in the following areas:

The anticipated total investment is Can$18.3 billion. Additionally, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) is currently developing the following priority projects:  

The Maya Train: Eco-touristic railway (1,470 km) connecting Cancún (Quintana Roo) and Palenque (Chiapas), and crossing the touristic zone of Tulum and Riviera Maya. Under the coordination of the National Fund for Tourism Promotion (FONATUR), the Maya Train is one of AMLO’s signature projects, with an estimated investment of US$6.3 to US$7.9 billion in public and private funds. 

The Tehuantepec Isthmus Trade Railway: AMLO announced that US$5.22 billion will be allocated for this project, which aims to provide a logistics platform that will connect Asia with the East Coast of the U.S. (from Salina Cruz in the Gulf of Mexico to Coatzacoalcos in the Pacific). Planned infrastructure works include the following:

Oil refinery in Dos Bocas, Tabasco: According to the Mexican government, the refinery will have a processing capacity of 340 thousand barrels per day by applying high-energy efficiency technology.

Summary

Mexico is a natural and strategic market for Canadian companies. Between 1993 and 2018, total merchandise trade between Canada and Mexico grew almost 10-fold thanks to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In 2020, a modernized NAFTA (Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA)) entered into force between Canada, Mexico, and the U.S., reinforcing economic integration within North America. The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is a free trade agreement between Canada and 10 other countries in the Asia-Pacific, including Mexico. Also, Canada was the first non-Latin American country to sign a Joint Declaration on a Partnership with the Pacific Alliance aimed at long-term, multi-sectoral cooperation with Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Peru.

One of the best ways of achieving success in Mexico is through cooperation with a solid local partner who can assist in assessing clients’ specific needs, and give access to the traditionally closed supply networks of the industry. The Trade Commissioner Service in Mexico will be ready to work with you and support your company’s business development efforts in the Mexican market.

For more information on infrastructure in the Mexican market, please contact Miguel González, Trade Commissioner for the Infrastructure, Oil & Gas and Electricity sectors in Mexico.

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