MEXICO CITY (CN) — Nearshoring and its implications for renewable energy and relations between Mexico, Canada and the U.S. were among the main talking points Tuesday during a Council of the Americas conference on unlocking Mexico's economic potential.
Founded by banking scion David Rockefeller in the 1960s, the Council of the Americas, a free trade organization, maintains a large corporate membership, including major banks, mining companies and tech giants like Apple.
Susan Segal, president and CEO of the organization, introduced the conference with an emphasis on the historical implications of the upcoming Mexican presidential election — which will likely result in Mexico's first female president — and the importance of "building connections between Mexico, Canada and the U.S."
Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico's presidential frontrunner, spoke at a Council of the Americas meeting on Monday, outlining her plan and downplaying any potential hurdle concerning the revision of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
"It's only a revision, not a renegotiation," she said in her speech.
Sheinbaum called her proposal for her presidential term "shared prosperity," a plan that includes investment, economic and development plans for the country. It was met with great applause by Segal, who called it "spectacular."
Bertha Xóchitl Gálvez Ruiz, the other presidential frontrunner, did not speak at the conference.
Aligning with Segal's vision for the country's future economic potential, Mexican Secretary of Finance Rogelio Ramírez de la O discussed the U.S. exploring the future of nearshoring in Mexico.
A boom in nearshoring in Mexico would likely mean U.S. or Canadian-based companies moving manufacturing and production operations out of Asia and setting up shop in Mexico to get closer to their main markets.
"Mexico is one of the most important countries for investment and is still growing," he said. "Mexico is in a privileged position to take advantage of nearshoring."
Ramírez de la O listed an already-existing network of trade agreements, privileged location, natural resources and a young, qualified population as Mexico's major nearshoring draw.
Some hurdles to nearshoring, he said, include a lack of industrial areas, insecurity and a lack of infrastructure.
"Nearshoring needs to benefit the whole country, not just specific industries," said Francisco Aristeguieta, the group head of international banking at Scotiabank, in a later panel.
"There needs to be a long-term benefit," he added.
Jennifer Pierce, president of TC Energía, expressed the need for private companies to collaborate with governments to create viable energy infrastructure and bring strategic energy projects to the Southeastern region of Mexico, the nation's poorest.
These projects would include innovation and nearshoring, and result in economic growth.
"With nearshoring comes more electricity. Reliable clean energy would be a back-up to renewable energy," she said.
This type of energy project collaboration between investors and Mexico's Federal Electricity Commission, the government's public electricity utility, would be a "win, win," Pierce said.
Mexican Secretary of Economy Raquel Buenrostro agreed with the need for the public and private sectors to work together.
"We need to have an honest conversation with the private sector" concerning the need for private companies to invest in public infrastructure that would include benefits for nearshoring, she said.
Collaboration not just between the public and private sector is needed, but a stronger connection between the U.S. and Mexico, said Roberto Velasco, Mexico's chief officer for North America in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"No two countries in the world have worked together like Mexico and the U.S. have," he said.
The collaborative tone of the conference echoed the accordance between Mexico's corporate leaders and policymakers with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement in 2020.
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