Playa del Carmen officials say they want a clearer accounting from CFE after another round of power outages raised questions about the city’s electrical capacity. The planned meeting would bring municipal officials face-to-face with CFE’s new local superintendent, with infrastructure projects, housing plans, and business disruptions all on the agenda. Recent CFE work at a local substation adds another layer to the question: what has changed, and what still has not?

Playa del Carmen seeks CFE meeting over recurring power outages

Playa del Carmen’s territorial planning secretary, Hernán González De los Santos, said municipal officials will seek a meeting with CFE’s new local superintendent, Guillermo Pedrero, to review electricity infrastructure projects and recent outages in the city.

The request follows an earlier meeting with the previous CFE superintendent, where municipal officials were shown a projection of works and actions intended to strengthen local power service. González said the recent failures and blackouts have not yet produced visible results for the public.

“We want to really see what projects and scope CFE has,” González said.

City links outages to growth and development

Municipal officials are tying the outages to a wider planning issue. González said that urban growth in Playa del Carmen requires sufficient electrical infrastructure to meet current and future demand. He also pointed to upcoming Viviendas del Bienestar housing projects, which will need basic services, especially electricity.

Without reliable service, González said, new projects and investments cannot move forward with confidence. His comments situate the CFE meeting within a broader discussion about whether public utilities can support housing, business activity, and construction already planned for the municipality.

CFE recently reported substation work

CFE said in April that it had energized power equipment at the Zac Nicté substation in Playa del Carmen as part of work to expand the national transmission network in the Yucatán Peninsula. The utility said the project was intended to improve electricity quality for 708,788 service connections in the region.

Vallarta Daily previously reported that CFE had expanded Playa del Carmen power supply capacity through the Zac Nicté project. That report noted that a transmission upgrade can improve stability, but it does not eliminate every cause of outages, including local faults, storms, damaged lines, or equipment failures.

CFE also issued a May 4 notice saying it restored service after a circuit at the Playa del Carmen substation went out of operation on May 3 following a discharge. The utility said crews isolated the affected area and recovered service through switching maneuvers.

Business concern has already surfaced

The outages have already drawn concern from local businesses. Vallarta Daily reported earlier this month that restaurant operators in Playa del Carmen said blackouts had affected restaurants, hotels, and commercial areas during busy periods, adding pressure before expected World Cup-related travel through Mexico.

For the municipality, the next step is a direct conversation with Pedrero. González said he wants more direct communication with the new CFE official than the city had with the previous superintendent, to coordinate efforts to reduce the impact on families and businesses affected by repeated outages.