Mexico City, Feb 4, 2009 -- EFE

The Federal Electricity Commission, or CFE, has signed an agreement with Los Angeles that opens the way for the Mexican state-owned power company to sell electricity generated from renewable energy sources to the Southern California city.

The electricity sold to Los Angeles will be generated at the Cerro Prieto geothermal power plant in Mexicali, the capital of Baja California state.

The memorandum of understanding covering the electricity sales was signed Tuesday at the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power headquarters by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and CFE chief Alfredo Elias Ayub, the Mexican power company said in a statement.

The CFE, which did not say how much power was involved in the deal, said the agreement was similar to another signed with Belize.

The Mexican state-owned power company said it was finalizing a similar deal with Guatemala "that will be signed soon."

Thanks to the agreements, the CFE expects foreign power sales to total $100 million by the end of 2010, Elias Ayub said.

"With the signing of this memorandum, we are strengthening the CFE's commitment to promote the generation of electric energy from renewable and clean sources," the CFE said.

The Mexican utility said it was pursuing these deals to "diversify the sources of electricity generation" while "reducing emissions of pollutants and greenhouse warming gases into the atmosphere."