Although Mexico maintains competitive advantages for attracting investment, specialists in the industrial real estate sector warned that deficiencies in infrastructure, basic services and security are limiting the country’s ability to fully take advantage of the relocation of supply chains.
In the panel “The logistics infrastructure needed by new supply chains” at the Industrial & Logistics Summit, organized by Inmobiliare , representatives of the sector agreed that the departure of companies from Asia to North America represents an opportunity for Mexico.
Javier Camarena, CEO of Meor , stated that Mexico’s geographic location continues to be one of its main strengths, as well as being part of strategic sectors such as aeronautics, medical devices, electronics, data centers and semiconductors.
However, he warned that the country’s competitiveness does not depend solely on the availability of industrial buildings, but also on having an efficient logistics infrastructure that facilitates the operation of companies.
Among the main challenges, he mentioned delays in border connectivity projects, such as the Otay II border crossing in Tijuana. While the infrastructure on the U.S. side was completed several years ago, work on its development has only just begun in Mexico.
He also pointed out that there are deficiencies in roads within important industrial corridors, where the deterioration of the roads affects the loading and unloading of goods.
However, the main concern for investors continues to be road safety , so many companies are looking to locate as close to the border as possible to reduce risks. “Our clients’ number one concern today is road safety,” he said.
For his part, José Antonio Hagg, Regional Vice President of Real Estate at Colliers , explained that the Latin American industrial real estate market went from an availability of 2% during the pandemic to 6% currently.
He said that the uncertainty generated by tariffs, insecurity and other economic factors has caused some companies to postpone investment decisions, while several developers face a greater availability of completed or under-construction properties.
He also indicated that investors no longer only evaluate location and costs, but also the availability of essential services such as water, energy, drainage, and labor. “Today, clients are looking to secure operations for the next five or ten years,” he stated.
He mentioned, for example, a major company that operates industrial facilities without sufficient access to drinking water, as well as other projects in regions where a lack of natural gas supply has limited new investments.
Osiel Cruz Pacheco, CEO of Grupo T21 , agreed that there are bottlenecks that prevent greater investment and competitiveness due to issues such as comprehensive planning.
“We are building passenger trains when we need to reach many areas of the country with freight trains that motivate and promote the competitiveness of the regions,” he stressed.
Linda Hernandez, Logistic & Rail Transportation Sales at Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) Mexico , stated that one of the advantages of rail is safety, where the company has a 99.98 percent safety rating.
“In other words, the cargo we move has no incidents or vandalism, and when you consider that, that you have a carrier and that there are few operators and they are making the same number of trips per day and the same profits, you have the great competitive advantage of the railway in terms of capacity and being operated by two people,” he explained.
He noted that this railway provides connectivity between Canada, the United States, and Mexico , with a train running from San Luis Potosí to Chicago, covering a distance of three thousand kilometers in 96 hours.
Similarly, he detailed that the railway company incorporated one thousand temperature-controlled containers for the movement of frozen perishable products , including meat, cookies, chocolates, vegetables, and the entire trade balance between the United States and Mexico.
Osiel Cruz considered that the operation of the railroad is more competitive compared to the one carried out through 300 trucks.
“We have a crisis of 90,000 trucking operators, because there is no incentive for the operator to introduce his son to the trade as before, and also because of the risks they run on highways or armed robberies or in the distribution centers, warehouses, factories where they go, we do not give them access when they arrive to a restroom or a rest area while loading or unloading the merchandise,” he explained.
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