While Chihuahua is moving forward to position itself as a pioneer in electromobility, challenges remain, such as the development of public policies, infrastructure, workforce, incentives and greater promotion. During the presentation of the roadmap of the "Chihuahua E-Mobility Ready" project that, together with the William Davidson Institute of the University of Michigan (WDI), has been developed over the course of a year, specialists explained that given the current global restructuring of value chains, nearshoring represents a growth opportunity for the coming years, which is why the state seeks to diversify and lead in the electromobility industry. For Francisco González, president of the National Auto Parts Industry (INA), the generation of talent and the development of infrastructure at national and local level to detonate this type of projects are priorities that states must keep in mind, because with the arrival of new companies and future requirements (such as charging stations) will be necessary. "The concrete challenges are to have a clear idea of the development of the people needed, of the development of talent for electromobility. Having good universities, good preparation, scholarships (...) What we require at the state level is the facilitation of charging stations, having the possibility of infrastructure, greater accessibility," he said. Also, to increase the promotion of current actions, "to expose in a clear way the competitive and comparative advantages that each state has. Nearshoring is coming, but it is necessary to explain the way to get there (...) I wish there were also stronger incentives". In an interview with El Economista, María Angélica Granados Trespalacios, head of Chihuahua's Ministry of Innovation and Economic Development (SIDE), explained that the local government is developing short, medium and long-term infrastructure plans. In energy terms, she recalled, they recently created the State Agency for Energy Development so that together with the private sector they can develop the infrastructure that new companies require; Chihuahua is the city where there is most demand. In addition, they are working together with the Federation on border and highway infrastructure issues. "We have had important talks with the Chancellery on border infrastructure issues, in the crossings of New Mexico with Chihuahua, and we are in constant dialogue to see how between the three levels of government we can get that up and running, which can also be a bottleneck at some point due to the amount of cargo crossing". In presenting the state's advantages, Fernando Alba, Undersecretary of Industry, Mining and Energy, assured that "Chihuahua is one of the most developed states in Mexico. In 2022 we will receive 1.875 billion dollars in FDI. We are the number one state in the country in exports with more than $55 billion dollars and the number one state in the number of people employed in the manufacturing sector. In addition, our higher education institutions are closely aligned with the needs of the industry". "The automotive industry is undergoing a rapid transformation and our goal is to position Chihuahua as a key player in North America and beyond. The shift to e-mobility presents a wide range of opportunities and WDI's roadmap provides a clear path to achieve our goals," he said. According to the local government, Chihuahua plays an important role in the supply chain, employing more than 184,000 workers in the automotive and transportation industries, as well as dozens of tier one, two and three suppliers. In addition, key investments in the transition to electromobility will generate the conditions to boost the expected development in Mexico in 2023, within the framework of the national strategy, projected for the end of this year. Analysis Diana Páez, senior director of Energy and Mobility at the institute, explained that among the factors and initiatives designed to promote the transition to the production of Electric Vehicles (EVs) and the development of the value chain in the region, the 2030 objectives that dictate that 50% of the cars manufactured in the country must be electric, agreements with the Private Sector, the issue of lithium and new investments that have been announced, such as the arrival of Tesla in Nuevo León, stand out. Against this backdrop, Chihuahua developed a roadmap to take advantage of the capabilities in the automotive, electronics, semiconductor and mining industries, as well as to promote strategies to increase competitiveness and take advantage of new business opportunities. The roadmap developed by WDI, in conjunction with SIDE and the Institute for Innovation and Competitiveness (I2C), identifies the opportunities that exist within the electric car value chain, the key elements and players of the emerging global electromobility ecosystem, as well as the most effective strategies to participate in this industry transition, highlighting its impact in Chihuahua and the rest of North America. To consolidate the Chihuahua e-Mobility Ready roadmap, WDI developed an "Electric Mobility Readiness Assessment" tool to conduct an overall diagnosis of Chihuahua and its capabilities to manage this transition, focusing on the production of light electric vehicles. According to the directive, business opportunities sorted by value chain and ecosystem context are two areas on which the study places the most emphasis. "This roadmap provides information on the opportunities that Chihuahua can take advantage of and the stakeholders that must be involved, in order to successfully compete in the transition to electric mobility," she said. She stated that there are 10 opportunities that need to be delved into: EV training, high-voltage harness manufacturing, charger manufacturing, EV component testing, electrical conversions, recycling, powertrain, EV assembly, batteries and semiconductors. With this exercise, Chihuahua consolidates its position as one of the pioneer states in the implementation of this type of methodologies, improving its conditions for attracting investment and the development of this industry, aligned with global trends and the future of the automotive and electric sector. Source: El Economista, El Puntero https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/estados/Chihuahua-avanza-en-materia-de-electromovilidad-20230316-0127.html https://elpuntero.com.mx/inicio/2023/03/16/presentan-gobierno-del-estado-y-wdi-de-university-of-michigan-hoja-de-ruta-para-posicionar-a-chihuahua-como-lider-en-electromovilidad/