MÉRIDA.- In recent days the debate over electricity rates in Yucatan It inflamed tempers in the local Congress and led to a confrontation between the parties, with half-truths and political disqualifications on both sides.
What is the proposal about? How viable is it and what could its consequences be? How true are the statements made by the legislators on the platform? Here, the keys to understand and analyze the topicas well as the verification of some of the data stated by politicians.
What is the tariff proposal for Yucatán?
The deputy Alvaro Cetina Puertoon behalf of the PAN bench, proposed to the local congress to issue a point of agreement to exhort to the Federal Electricity Commission, the Secretariats of Energy and Finance and Public Credit, the Energy Commission and the State Government (in their competent bodies in energy matters) so that “to the extent of their powers they carry out the technical, regulatory and administrative studies necessary in order for the state of Yucatán to be permanently reclassified to the rate 1F of the basic domestic supply.”
To be clear: the points of agreement “They do not constitute legislative initiatives, but statements on political, cultural, economic or social issues that affect a particular community or group.” details the glossary of the Chamber of Deputies.
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That is, the exhortation does not imply an immediate reduction in electricity rates. This is only a request for the organizations involved to evaluate the rate change in the entity. This decision is based on a series of studies and analyzes that will be detailed below.
Carrying them out does not necessarily imply the modification of the rate. Even as it is an appeal, the entities involved could explain their reasons for not considering it pertinent to carry out said procedure.
The PAN, without a complete bench
As established by protocol, the proposal was presented on the platform with one speaker in favor and another against (Alejandro Cuevas Mena, from Morena). If it had been admitted, it would have been referred to a commission. Once it is rejected, it will not be able to be presented again until the next session.
The session was attended 30 of 35 deputies. Three of the PAN bench, which proposed the point of agreement, were missing; as well as Harry Rodríguez Botello, from the PVEM, and Larissa Acosta Escalante, from MC.
The proposal was revoked by the 17 Morena legislators, plus one from the PT and the non-party deputy Rosana Couoh. There were 11 votes in favor: nine from the PAN, one from the PRI and one from MC (Javier Osante).
What is the CFE 1F rate?
Now let’s go with the request. What is the 1F rate?
According to the CFE site, this rate applies only to those who use domestic energy, “for loads that are not considered high consumption in accordance with the provisions of the DAC Rate (Domestic High Consumption), in locations whose average monthly temperature in summer is 33 degrees Celsius minimum“.
The text adds that it will consider “that a locality reaches the minimum average temperature in summer of 33 degrees Celsius, when it reaches the indicated limit for three or more years of the last five that the corresponding information is available.
“It will be considered that during a year it reached the indicated limit when record the monthly average temperature for two consecutive months or more, according to the reports prepared by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources.” This last point refers to the National Meteorological System recordswhich depends on the National Water Commission.
The charges of the rates for domestic use are determined by the SHCP in accordance with the methodology of agreement 123/2017, published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on December 28, 2018.
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States of Mexico with 1F rate
Some regions of Spain already have a 1F rate. Baja California, Sonora, Sinaloa and Nayarit. In the Southeast, all the municipalities of Tabasco and Campeche are already in this ranking. In the case of the neighboring state, whose temperatures are similar to those of Yucatánsince the end of 2020.
Currently it is difficult to know which municipalities belong to each rate. However, each user can know in what range their demarcation is through their energy bill electricity, where that information is stipulated. Lines below, a map released by the CFE at the beginning of 2020 with the distribution of domestic rates in the country. At that time, Campeche was not yet in 1F.
Las Fees at all levels vary according to consumption. The less SEO, the better the rate you pay. For example, during the summer, In the 1F rate, basic consumption covers the first 300 kilowatt-hourswhich They are charged at 0.815 pesos. The limit to stay in it is 2,500 watts of average consumption per month. Those who exceed the figure automatically have the DAC rate applied.
What rate are we currently on in Yucatán?
In Yucatán, not all municipalities have the same rate, and there may be communities with two rates. According to the Mega Library Archivethe quotas in the entity have been reclassified three times in recent history. The last one was eight years ago, in July 2017, when Mérida was relocated to the 1D rate. Previously, in June 2011, several communities went from 1A to 1B. In 2003 many others were changed to 1C.
There are currently 97 municipalities in tariff 1B, according to Deputy Cuevas Mena. At this level, the basic consumption is limited to 125 kilowatt-hours, for which 0.977 pesos are paid (the highest of the current rates in Yucatan). The limit to remain on this rate is 400 average kilowatts per month.
The populations that are in category 1C They pay 0.973 pesos for their first 150 kilowatt hours in the summer. Those who are in 1D They pay the same amount, but for their first 175 Kw/h. The limit to remain in 1C is up to 850 average kw per month. For 1D it is 1,000.
Regarding the proposal, there were several statements on the platform with biased information.
According to deputy Álvaro Cetina, reclassifying the rates would allow Yucatecans to “pay half of what they pay today.” This statement is based on a technical analysis made by the bench that indicates that a family with consumption of thousand kilowatts bimonthly You pay 2,255 pesos with the 1D rate, but with the 1F rate you would only pay 1,146 pesos, which represents a reduction of almost 50%.
However, the 50% savings claim is imprecisesince the percentage will depend on the amount of kilowatts consumed and the rate that the user pays today. For example, those who are currently on rate 1B would experience a more marked change in the cost of kilowatts per hour when moving to 1F; In addition, the greater the consumption, the greater the amount saved. However, The rate change would imply a decrease in the price that is paid today.
For example, in rate B the basic service is limited to 125 kw per hour; while in the 1F it includes 300 kw. This means that, for example, consuming 300kw in summer in Tizimín costs 526.9 pesos, while in Mérida it costs 311.15. With the reclassification, the amount would be 244.5 for everyone, based on the rates applied this year.
Prices for rate reclassification
According to Alejandro Cuevas, the reclassification proposal “only seeks to benefit 0.02% of consumers,” referring to users who consume between 1,500 and 2,500 kw. The statement is false, since the rate reclassification It would imply a reduction in charges from basic consumption, as shown in the table above these lines.
According to the former PRD member, in statements attributed to former governor Mauricio Vila Dosal, 70% of the population consumes less than 400 kw. Even with that consumption figure there would be a reduction in the payment amounts, although not necessarily 50% as the PAN members have said.
Another inaccurate statement is about the figure of homes without electricity in Yucatán. Cuevas Mena said that in 2024 there were 5,900 homes without service, a figure that coincides with that recorded in the 2020 Inegi census (5,961). However, he added that at the end of the Vila Dosal administration there had already been 8,900 homes without electricity. The deputy did not cite the source of his statement and no records of said information were found. However, the increase in the number could be linked to the growth of the housing stock.
How many homes without electricity are there in Yucatán?
In 2020, Inegi registered 658,351 houses. In 2024, according to the National Household Income and Expenditure Survey, There were already 706,464 homes in the entity. Of these, 1.4% lacked electricity, which translates into 9,890, a figure even higher than that stated by the deputy.
However, the Medium Term Program of the Yucatán Energy Agency establishes that “according to official figures, there are in Yucatán about 6,000 homes without electricity availability.” He even points out that Cantamayec, Chemax and Mayapán are the municipalities with the highest number of homes without electricity availability.
On the other hand, the president of the Congress board of directors also offered that among the axes of Morena from the government is “supporting the 97 municipalities that are currently in rate B so that they can go to C and D.”
The deputy did not say the mechanism to achieve this. However, it also implies a rate reclassification and the process to achieve this is similar to the one already described: that the CFE, based on Conagua records, determines the average temperatures of the last three years and based on this the SHCP sets the seat where it should go.
Yucatecans, dissatisfied with the light
Thus, while the deputies debate with half-truths, it is a reality that the dissatisfaction of the Yucatecans with the service of electric power supply grows.
According to the National Survey of Government Quality and Impact, 61.2% of respondents in Yucatán were satisfied with him energy service in 2021. By 2023 the figure dropped to 57.5% compared to a national average of 78%.
The 2025 results will be announced next March; however, the constant blackouts that were recorded this year do not seem to improve the situation. This, coupled with the fact that the entry into operation of the new combined cycle plants in Yucatán continues to be postponed.
In the case of the Merida IV plant It is still in the testing phase. For its part, the station Riviera Maya Valladolid would be in operations from August 2027, as announced by Emilia Esther Calleja Alor, director of the CFE.
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