MEXDC Reports 1,730 MW in Data Centers Announced, Only 279 MW Operating

Mexico has accumulated 1,730 megawatts (MW) of announced data centers, yet only 279 MW are operational and 205 MW more are under construction, according to the Mexican Data Center Association (MEXDC). The gap between what has been announced and what is actually available reveals that access to the power grid, not financing, determines how many projects materialize.

MEXDC projects an investment of USD 82.5 billion in data center construction and equipment between 2026 and 2031, with 98,366 jobs during the construction phase and 35,430 in operations. Hyperscalers have already deployed capital: Amazon Web Services (AWS) committed over USD 5 billion over 15 years, Microsoft is allocating USD 1.3 billion to cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure over three years, and Google Cloud opened its third Latin American region in Querétaro. The constraint is neither demand nor investor appetite: it is power infrastructure. In regions such as El Bajío and the northern border, over 60 percent of the transmission grid operates near maximum capacity and reserve margins have fallen below the regulatory threshold of 6 percent, according to El Financiero.

MEXDC director Adriana Rivera Cerecedo told Forbes México that an AI data center requires at least 250 MW of dedicated capacity, a figure Mexico cannot currently meet: the country's largest facility, in Pedro Escobedo, Querétaro, operates at 149 MW. Transmission grid saturation is critical in El Bajío, where the highest demand for new projects is concentrated. Interconnection permits with the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) and the National Energy Control Center (CENACE) take several years in certain regions, according to MEXDC. "If we manage to solve the energy issue one way or another, with these 1.7 gigawatts we will put Mexico at the forefront," Rivera Cerecedo said.

The gap between the 1,730 MW announced and the 484 MW operational or under construction confirms that grid connection speed, not capital availability, will set the real pace of data center deployment in Mexico during the second half of the decade.

This note was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor prior to publication.