The Potential of Variable Renewable Energy Sources in Mexico: A Temporally Evaluated and Geospatially Constrained Techno-Economical Assessment

Edgar Ubaldo Peña Sánchez, Severin David Ryberg, Heidi Ursula Heinrichs, Detlef Stolten and Martin Robinius
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Edgar Ubaldo Peña Sánchez: Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic Systems Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, 52425 Juelich, Germany
Severin David Ryberg: Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic Systems Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, 52425 Juelich, Germany
Heidi Ursula Heinrichs: Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic Systems Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, 52425 Juelich, Germany
Detlef Stolten: Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic Systems Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, 52425 Juelich, Germany
Martin Robinius: Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic Systems Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, 52425 Juelich, Germany

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 18, 1-25

Abstract: Due to the increasing global importance of decarbonizing human activities, especially the production of electricity, the optimal deployment of renewable energy technologies will play a crucial role in future energy systems. To accomplish this, particular attention must be accorded to the geospatial and temporal distribution of variable renewable energy sources (VRES), such as wind and solar radiation, in order to match electricity supply and demand. This study presents a techno-economical assessment of four energy technologies in the hypothetical context of Mexico in 2050, namely: onshore and offshore wind turbines and open-field and rooftop photovoltaics. A land eligibility analysis incorporating physical, environmental, and sociopolitical eligibility constraints and individual turbine and photovoltaic park simulations, drawing on 39 years of climate data, is performed for individual sites across the country in an effort to determine the installable potential and the associated levelized costs of electricity. The results reveal that up to 54 PWh of renewable electricity can be produced at a levelized cost of electricity of less than 70 EUR·MWh −1 . Around 91% (49 PWh) of this electricity would originate from 23 TW of open-field photovoltaic parks that could occupy up to 578,000 km 2 of eligible land across the country. The remaining 9% (4.8 PWh) could be produced by 1.9 TW of onshore wind installations allocated to approximately 68,500 km 2 of eligible land that is almost fully adjacent to three mountainous zones. The combination of rooftop photovoltaic and offshore wind turbines accounts for a very small share of less than 0.03% of the overall techno-economical potential.

Keywords: renewable energy; land eligibility analysis; Mexico; renewable potential; technical potential; geospatial analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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