By Karina Quintero and Jennifer Galindo
The trend towards relocating production lines to consumption centers, better known as nearshoring , is reconfiguring the global industrial map and Mexico is at the epicenter of this transformation. Although investors’ preferences have been mainly focused on the north of the country, the Bajío region is consolidating as an option for these companies.
This region, with its unique combination of advanced infrastructure, qualified talent and a strategic geographic location, is attracting multimillion-dollar investments that could redefine Mexico’s economic future, a phenomenon that, according to Jorge Ávalos, president of the Mexican Association of Private Industrial Parks (AMPIP), will have an effect for at least two decades.
According to the Ministry of Economy , as of the second quarter of 2024, the Bajío region is among the top 10 in terms of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) concentration , with Guanajuato in 5th place, with 4%; while San Luis Potosí (7th), Jalisco (9th) and Querétaro (10th) continue the list, with 3% each.
Foreign investment in the Bajío has focused mainly on the automotive sector and its suppliers, which in turn is evolving towards electromobility . However, according to specialists, the aerospace industry, medical equipment and, more recently, data centers, specifically in Querétaro, have also been promoted.
“We are witnessing an 18% increase in investments focused on clean technologies, particularly in the production of components for electric vehicles and in the development of the aerospace industry,” Luis Ernesto Rojas Ávila, general director of the Coordinator for the Promotion of Foreign Trade of the State of Guanajuato (Cofoce), told T21 .
The Bajío region has established itself as a strategic point for nearshoring in Mexico, which is why companies such as BorgWarner, Mitsui High Tec and Jetour have decided to park in one of its strategic points; while companies such as BMW are expanding, according to information from Colliers, a real estate consulting firm.
TECHNOLOGY AND CONNECTIVITY
This evolution is no coincidence. Infrastructure is, without a doubt, one of the pillars that support the rise of the Bajío. Ismael Plascencia, coordinator of the Confederation of Industrial Chambers of the United Mexican States (Concamin) Bajío, highlights that the region offers unprecedented connectivity, both nationally and internationally.
“With two major rail concessions crossing the Bajío and a highway network that connects directly to the United States, we have reduced transportation times to the border by 25%,” says Plascencia.
In this regard, Eduardo Covarrubias, representative of the Association of Mexican Entrepreneurs (AEM) Guanajuato chapter, adds that the region is located nine hours from the most important dry port in the world, which is Laredo, Texas, -speaking from Guanajuato-…
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