Energy Reform in Mexico–and U.S. Pushback [] Center for Global Justice

Monday, December 5, 2022

1:00pm CST – 2:00pm EST

Energy Reform in Mexico–and U.S. Pushback

Kurt Hackbarth

If the greenwashing rhetoric of the international media and corporate PR machines is to be believed, AMLO is a lover of dirty energy, a 70s throwback, coal-and-oil addict who is thrusting Mexico irresponsibly into a fossil-fuel future. In truth, what he is trying to do is reclaim Mexico’s sovereignty over its own energy resources–the “original sin” of any country from the imperial perspective. In doing so, he is taking on multinational energy monoliths like Iberdrola and Eni, the hedge funds behind them such as Black Rock, and the governments of Spain, the US, and Canada, the latter two of which are threatening to attempt to block the president’s reforms through the arbitration mechanism of the USMCA agreement. Kurt Hackbarth will review AMLO’s reforms, which attempt to walk back elements of the 2013 energy privatizations of Enrique Peña Nieto, and give some indications of where Mexico is heading in energy terms.

What we do The Center engages in local community support and outreach to promote and advance initiatives and movements toward social justice, grassroots empowerment and democracy, and environmental sustainability.  It is also devoted to critical analysis of the processes and impacts of globalization, both local and international. The Center works to develop alternative socio-economic systems that conserve and share the world’s cultural, economic, and environmental resources for the benefit of humankind.