Chetumal, Quintana Roo — Governor Mara Lezama has clarified that no final decision has been made on any specific energy project for the state, denying reports of an imminent contract with Turkish company Karpowership for floating power plants.
The governor’s remarks came after Karpowership announced it was ready to deploy a 250-megawatt generator ship off Quintana Roo’s coast, along with a floating liquefied natural gas terminal, under a supposed federal-state collaboration.
“No. We are studying different alternatives; what we are looking for are options to achieve energy sufficiency,” Lezama said. “It is essential to transition, and clearly clean energies are fundamental.”
Lezama emphasized that the priority is to address the region’s historic energy deficit, driven by rapid population growth and a booming tourism industry. However, any project seeking to operate along the coast must undergo rigorous scientific and operational scrutiny.
As part of a diversification strategy, the governor said she reviewed cutting-edge technological alternatives during a recent working trip to Houston, Texas. The state administration is now working closely with the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) and the Energy Ministry to evaluate between four and five viable energy projects.
“We are coordinated with the federal energy secretary and the head of CFE, and the goal is to fight for certainty in electricity supply in Quintana Roo,” she said.
One of the biggest structural hurdles to transitioning to a lower-emission industrial model, Lezama acknowledged, is the lack of natural gas pipeline infrastructure. The state remains isolated from the main pipeline network.
“We have the gas pipeline that does not reach Quintana Roo, and we are looking at how we can get natural gas. We are very advanced, but we need to connect with other states,” she said.
Regarding the floating operations proposed by the Turkish company, Lezama warned that international experiences with mobile plants require deep scrutiny of the fuels they burn — whether diesel or natural gas — due to potential impacts on marine ecosystems. Projects will only get the green light once they have all required federal environmental impact assessments approved.
