Tesla will build its first factory in Latin America in Monterrey, Mexico. It will be the largest in the region and will have an investment of 5 billion dollars. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador spoke with magnate Elon Musk about the care of the water that his company will have to have since it is scarce in the north of the country, as well as the possibility of selling him lithium as a raw material for the manufacture of cars electrical.
Tesla seeks to manufacture 20 million electric vehicles per year by the end of this decade, so its seventh factory, the first to be located in Latin America, will be of great importance to achieve this goal. It will be in the city of Monterrey, northern Mexico.
Advantages
“It is quite evident that the north of the country, starting with its geographical location, has a very strong advantage in economic terms. But we also know that Mexico as a country has an advantage in terms of skilled and unskilled labor, in terms of salaries. Specific, [el estado] Nuevo León has very special characteristics for foreign investment. One of them, I think, has always been the strength of the institutions here,” explains Kelyna Siliceo, an economic analyst in Monterrey.
The date on which Tesla will start operations is unknown, as well as the jobs it will generate: “We know that in the case of plants, like Tesla’s, a large amount will be invested in infrastructure and also in terms of employment, this is expected to be a multiplier of social well-being”, underlines the analyst.
The automotive sector represents a third of Mexico’s exports. In 2022, the country produced 3.3 million vehicles and exported 2.8 million mainly to the United States. There are currently 39 plants in Mexican territory, and Tesla will be the first dedicated to producing only electric cars, whose demand is increasing in Latin America.
lithium reserves
“The main advantage when generating the facility is the proximity to some of the lithium sources. We know that there is a good source of resources in the country”, emphasizes Siliceo.
Mexico has significant lithium reserves in the northern state of Sonora. Although the mineral was nationalized a year ago, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) told Tesla owner Elon Musk by phone to be open to negotiations.
He expressed it in his morning program: “Lithium belongs to the Mexicans, but if the raw material is bought, if the battery plants are put in Sonora, if the Sonorans, the Mexicans are given work, an agreement is reached ”.
López Obrador also assured that he asked the American magnate to commit to having a water protection plan at the Monterrey plant, since there is a shortage in the region and last year there were restrictions on consumption.
