Mexico's territory counts on vast coastal areas that could accommodate hydroelectric plans and wide swaths of land could be used for wind-powered projects, said Niceforo Guerrero, deputy energy minister for electricity.

And some three-fourths of the territory is arid or semi-arid, Guerrero added, so intense solar radiation could be tapped to produce energy.

The push for renewable electricity projects comes as Mexico confronts possible blackouts as early as 2005 if it does not push through a reform of the sector. The government has not yet sent a broad energy reform package to Congress, which is currently in discussions over a much-awaited tax system overhaul.

Mexico requires some $50 billion in the next decade to widen and modernize its 35,000 megawatt power grid. Officials say the government, which largely controls the energy sector, does not have the cash to foot the full bill of the overhaul so the system should be further opened to private capital.

Mexico nationalized its electricity industry in 1960, but in recent years it has allowed private companies to build plants under the independent power project (IPP) and other schemes to help meet demand.

Guerrero said that a single project fueled by wind or water may be tiny in size, but altogether Mexico can make a dent in its power needs with renewable sources.

"It sometimes seems that a half of a megawatt is not significant, but all together we will be able to arrive at a significant quantity of megawatts," said Guerrero.

A survey by the Commission for Environmental Co-operation, cureated under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), showed that the vast majority of Mexico's major industries would support so-called green energy, and about half would even pay 10 percent more for such power.