The $360m La Bufa plant, sited in the Mexican state of Zacatecas, will have a total capacity of 180MW.

The majority of that will be used to supply plants in the cities of Puebla and Silao, providing about 290GWh annually – or about 60% of their requirements – starting from September 2014, Volkswagen said.

Mexico’s Energy Secretary Pedro Joaquin Coldwell pledged to reform the country’s energy system to give such projects access to the transmission network.

The