Business Is Booming at New Mexico Borderplex

Albuquerque International Sunport

Business is booming at the New Mexico Borderplex, with new tenants continuing to locate there every year.

The Borderplex is a three-state, two-nation region with a population of more than 2.5 million people, including 150,000 college students who are attending seven universities on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The geography of the Borderplex region spans across south-central New Mexico as well as western Texas (El Paso County) and Ciudad Juárez in northern Mexico.

The New Mexico portion of the Borderplex encompasses all of Doña Ana County, and the economic activities throughout the NM Borderplex region are overseen by Las Cruces-based Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance (MVEDA).

“We are seeing much interest these days from companies thinking about locating in the New Mexico part of the Borderplex,” says Davin Lopez, MVEDA president and CEO. “Our particular area is already strong in distribution and logistics, and we want to continue attracting a diversity of industries such as aerospace, defense, energy and agriculture.”

New Tenants at the New Mexico Borderplex

New tenants in the NM Borderplex include Taiwan-based Hota Industrial Manufacturing, which produces gears and components for automakers such as GM, Ford and Tesla. Hota is investing $100 million to build a Santa Teresa manufacturing plant that will open in 2025.

California-based Coast Aluminum has undergone a $10 million expansion to its distribution center located in the Bi-National Industrial Park in Santa Teresa. Coast Aluminum distributes aluminum, stainless steel, copper, brass and other architectural metal products to U.S. and Mexican companies.

Cincinnati-based Monti Inc., which manufactures and fabricates electrical components, is another company that has opened for business in the NM Borderplex. In 2024, Monti invested $14 million to renovate an existing industrial building in Santa Teresa to use as its own 80,000-square-foot plant.

Spaceport America Partnership

In the aerospace sector, the Borderplex Alliance is establishing a new partnership with Spaceport America, which is an 18,000-acre complex specifically constructed for commercial space users and located off Interstate 25 between the cities of Las Cruces and Truth or Consequences. Tenants at Spaceport America include HAPSMobile, AeroVironment, Prismatic Ltd., SpinLaunch and UP Aerospace. Virgin Galactic, a space firm owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, has been a Spaceport America tenant for 20 years.

Spaceport America officials say their partnership with the NM Borderplex will hopefully attract and create more space-based economic activity and clients in manufacturing, research and development, engineering and high-tech services.
“Economic projections have the overall space industry reaching a level of $1.2 trillion by 2040, and we’re making sure that we are a major player,” says Charlie Hurley, Spaceport America public information officer. “We want to have a strong space-related economic development footprint in New Mexico.”

Santa Teresa Port Expansion

With the entire Borderplex region getting stronger in several economic sectors, a key contributor to the success of the region is the Santa Teresa Port of Entry in Doña Ana County. The port provides a dry-land roadway border crossing between Santa Teresa and Ciudad Juárez, with no bridges or rivers to be crossed, and a designated 12-mile overweight zone that allows trucks to carry up to 96,000 pounds of cargo.

Lopez points out that more than 50% of New Mexico’s total exports are transported through the Santa Teresa crossing each year.

“The Santa Teresa port also offers convenient access to Interstate 10, Interstate 25, and Class I railways BNSF and Union Pacific,” he says. “With all that action and activity, the Santa Teresa Port is now in need of expansion.”

In early 2024, General Services Administration and the Customs and Border Protection presented findings of a feasibility study on the Santa Teresa Port of Entry that was funded a couple years earlier.

As a result, New Mexico Sen. Martin Heinrich proposed several improvement options for the port, including enlarging it to 15 commercial lanes from the current three, and adding more inspection bays for commercial trucks. Heinrich also wants to extend the hours of operation for commercial traffic to 24 hours instead of its current 6 a.m.-10 p.m., and he would like to add many more customs inspectors and other employees.

“I look forward to the eventual expansion of Santa Teresa,” Lopez says.

Airport Transformations in New Mexico

In New Mexico’s high desert, two airports are undergoing transformations. Owned by the City of Albuquerque, each facility has a unique vision for the future of flight in the state.

As New Mexico’s largest commercial airport, Albuquerque International Sunport flies 5 million passengers each year on eight major carriers that offer nonstop flights from Albuquerque to 29 destinations. ABQ Sunport is undergoing a major renovation calledthe Dream of Flight project.

The renovation will upgrade the terminal’s infrastructure, improve security and create a more enjoyable experience for travelers. Some of the improvements include a relocated TSA screening checkpoint as well as a new food hall, retail shops and art exhibits. Completion for major construction is targeted for December 2024, while concession spaces are anticipated to be ready in 2025.

Double Eagle II Airport (AEG) is approximately seven miles northwest of the downtown business district. About 240 private planes, corporate jets and military aircraft are based at AEG, and the airport hosts more than 120,000 flight operations each year. Because of those many operations, the airport is undergoing an expansion project to upgrade the terminal building and add nearly 100 hangars to the property.

The first 46 hangars are under construction and slated for completion by 2026. The terminal project will feature several 24/7 amenities to enhance the flying experience for pilots traveling through.