Sheinbaum’s Goal for Mexico Industrial Parks is ‘Aggressive’ But Doable, Finsa Says
(Bloomberg) -- President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum’s pledge that there could be 100 more industrial parks in Mexico during her term is a “reasonable” but “aggressive goal” that will require partnership between the government and private entities, according to one of the biggest park operators in Mexico.
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Along with the size of investments and types of product being built at the facilities, the pace of park development will depend on the incoming government’s predisposition for support, Finsa executives said.
“With a very substantial increase in their willingness to help with this, it doesn’t seem totally crazy to me, but we have to see the details,” Hector Salas, director of new business development in the Bajio region, said in an interview at a press event earlier this month.
Nearshoring, the process by which firms relocate closer to US consumers, has been touted as a source of potential investment and fueled a boom in demand for industrial parks throughout Mexico. But for nearshoring to reach its full potential, Sheinbaum’s government must also address infrastructure and policy hurdles like making sure companies have access to water or energy.
There’s also the matter of uncertainty posed by the upcoming US elections, which have been upended by Joe Biden’s withdrawal and subsequent endorsement of Kamala Harris.
Elon Musk said just this week that Tesla Inc. won’t invest further in its planned Mexico factory until after the US elections, citing too much political risk from Republican nominee Donald Trump’s plan to impose more tariffs on Mexico-made goods.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, for his part, said Trump’s threat to ban Mexican cars is a bluff that isn’t serious, and Sheinbaum said Wednesday she’d wait to see what the reasons for the Tesla delay were.
Finsa surveyed 79 clients in the immediate aftermath of Mexico’s June elections that saw the ruling party hold on to power but also sent the peso plunging on concern that possible constitutional reforms might create headwinds for business. At that time, clients said they didn’t see themselves affected by Mexico’s elections, the US November contest or an upcoming 2026 review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement.
All respondents across 16 sectors reported feeling stable in their operations, according to Finsa, which has 24 industrial parks around the country and counts companies ranging from South Korea steel plate maker Dongkuk Steel and US medical device company Abbott Laboratories as customers.
The company, which in April said it had raised $605 million for its Fund V, has until January to boost the fund to as much as $800 million, said Albertina Leal, the company’s vice president of brand strategy and communications, though the company was satisfied with what it had raised so far. Finsa had accelerated raising funds for growing its portfolio amid increased interest in industrial space.
Among the infrastructure Finsa provides businesses at its industrial parks is security. The company earmarks around 6% to 7% of its investment in a park on security measures like closed-circuit cameras, according to Leal.
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