| Abstract |
The improvement of income level and population growth, has resulted in an increase in demand and consumption of electricity worldwide. At the same time, negative elements are perceived – e.g. global warming - that are assumed to be the result of the use of fossil fuels for the generation of electric power, which has reinforced the search for new ways of obtaining electricity through renewable sources or more environment friendly, like solar, wind and geothermal energy, among others. In the specific case of Mexico, approximately 71% of the electricity generated during 2017, was obtained through conventional technologies and geothermal energy only participated with 1.22% in the total generation (PRODESEN, 2018-2032). Renewables accounted for the remaining 29.0%. In that sense, for some authors (Pelaez, 2017; Hiriart, 2014), the production of electricity by geothermal sources, in the Mexican case, has been until now, marginal. Although it is true that the country has the potential for greater use of geothermal sources to produce electricity -or heating-, the development of such projects has been slowed down due to the fact that the geothermal sources are close to population centers in which the property rights are shared by several agents, which hinders the negotiation processes for the acquisition of land or the geothermal resources. In this sense, the present work is carried out in the area of Acoculco, in the state of Puebla, Mexico, where it is estimated that the geothermal resource is very close to three rural communities: Cruz Colorada, San Francisco Terrerillos and Ocojala. The objective of the research is to analyze the probable direct and indirect economic impact of the exploitation of the geothermal resource in the previously mentioned communities. For this, the methodology of Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) was used, which is constructed with the information obtained by applying a questionnaire to a representative sample of households in each community. This tool registers the income and expenditure transactions of households, which allows to generate an economic photograph of the internal and external relations of the communities analyzed; in the same way, the SAM makes it possible to identify the impact of exogenous shocks on communities, such as the development of infrastructure, and how it is transmitted in the inside and outside of the local economy. According to the information obtained, the development of the geothermal field would have marginal direct economic impacts in the three communities, due to the fact that most of its economic relations are with the exterior (acquisition of goods and services), so the multiplier effects would be reflected in the larger communities like Chignahuapan; this is, because the analyzed communities are mainly dedicated to primary activities (agriculture, livestock, forestry), and there is no local industry for the production of processed goods and they are forced to buy their products outside the communities. Despite the above, the direct effects that would be perceived in the communities would be represented by the payment for the use of the land –an in the community of Cruz Colorada it will be divided among the ejidatarios-, the generation of a few jobs, and some food and lodging services. In that sense, the greatest benefits would be obtained by the company that produces and commercializes the electricity, as well as the commerce and service sector outside the communities, and not the local inhabitants, in whose lands the geothermal resource exists. Based on the foregoing, it is required that for the project to be appropriate by the communities, it is required that the company clearly state the possible benefits of the project for the local people and design a strategy where it is committed to improve the local socioeconomic and infrastructure conditions. |