Hydro-Quebec to boost clean energy generation in Mexico

The public company Hydro-Quebec , created in 1944 by the government of Quebec , its only shareholder, which produces, transports and distributes electricity, seeks to sign an agreement with Mexico for the reactivation of 60 hydroelectric plants to produce clean energy and reduce consumer rates.

On the day before, the president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador , broadcast in a video posted on YouTube a meeting with executives of Hydro-Québec, aiming to negotiate a joint venture to increase hydroelectric production with the latest technologies.

This is something "very timely because the current hydroelectric plants are not operating at full capacity," said the Mexican president after explaining his government’s intention to modernize large hydroelectric power plants such as Infiernillo, Malpaso, and Chicoazen for the generation of clean energy at a low cost .

"It will be necessary to change turbines. By using the same reservoirs, we could produce twice as much energy as before," said the president at a meeting with the Vice President of Business Development of Hydro-Québec, Jaqueline Mongrut .

During the meeting with the Mexican president, Mongrut highlighted that Hydro-Quebec is a government company that accounts for 99.5 percent of the region’s hydraulic energy production , which is equivalent to more than 36 thousand megawatts .

Quebec has an immense hydraulic wealth in the form of some 500 thousand lakes and 4,500 rivers , a collective asset that the company has been able to take advantage of over time.

"Hydropower is the ideal means to face the main challenges that North America faces in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and guaranteeing a secure electricity supply," Hydro-Quebec stated in an official communication.

Quebec's hydroelectric power is a generation option with very little greenhouse gas emissions and no toxic waste, the company said.

In 2015 , electricity produced in Québec accounted for 32 percent of the total energy generated by Canada from all sources , but was responsible for only one percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions linked to electricity services .

The company, which also finances research and development in the field of energy and energy efficiency, has four divisions and employs about 20 thousand people . The results of 2014 indicate a turnover of three thousand 380 million dollars . It has more than four million consumers.

"Our clean and renewable electricity helps fight climate change by promoting a green and strong economy," the Canadian company added.

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