HARLINGEN, Texas - The Council for South Texas Economic Progress did not plan to be matchmakers but that is what has happened as a byproduct of their Binational Autocluster project.
The project, which started in July 2025, is a strategic initiative aimed at uniting 140-plus automotive companies, universities, and economic development entities across South Texas and Northern Tamaulipas, Mexico. By mapping this cluster, COSTEP hopes to bring more manufactures and suppliers to the Rio South Texas Region.
Rick Carrera, economic development director, said COSTEP has had 90 responses so far.
“We have found that some of the suppliers were not aware that their neighbors or their suppliers are based in the region. Some within a few miles, some several miles away. They did not know,” Carrera explained. “It is a win-win because some of these companies were getting their raw materials from suppliers outside the state. So it's been a very positive outcome, one that we thought might happen.”
Carrera added: “We weren't doing this (the Binational Autocluster project) to get into the matchmaking business, but we're more than happy to help that process out.”
The RGG Business Journal secured an interview with Carrera at the end of a South Texas Manufacturers Association meeting that was held at the Harlingen Convention Center.
The executive director of STMA, Mike Willis, had asked Carrera if he had any updates to share with the audience. He did. He spoke about the early success of the Binational Autocluster project.
Willis then explained to the audience what COSTEP is and what the Binational Autocluster project is all about.
"For those of you who are not familiar, COSTEP is a regional economic development group. They go to trade shows all over the world. They try to attract companies to our region," Willis said.
"They are trying to map out information about all the companies on both sides of the river that are in the automotive business to help show that to foreign prospects to try to see what kind of supply chain they could have if they located to northern Tamaulipas or especially the Rio Grande Valley. So, that is what that is for.”
In his in-depth interview with the Business Journal, Carrera also spoke about his attendance of the 50th National INDEX Convention, held in Mexico City. He said it was an excellent convention. INDEX is the trade association of the maquiladora industry in Mexico.
Carrera also spoke about a site selector conference he will be attending soon in Orlando, Florida.
Here, below, is an audio recording of the interview. It includes an introduction by STMA’s Willis.
Meanwhile, at the INDEX convention in Mexico City that Carrera was talking about, COSTEP signed a Memorandum of Understanding.
The agreement, with INDEX Nacional, seeks to enhance competitiveness, attract investment, and foster industrial development along the Rio South Texas–Tamaulipas corridor, or Rio South Texas, as COSTEP calls it.
Adam Gonzalez, COSTEP’s CEO, said the signing formalizes decades of cross-border collaboration between the maquiladora industry in northern Mexico and economic development organizations of South Texas. He said both institutions share a common vision: to promote sustainable industrial growth, technological innovation, and binational workforce development as drivers of regional prosperity.
“Our region has grown shoulder to shoulder with INDEX — not just through trade, but through projects, shared families, and a shared commitment to progress,” Gonzalez said. “This MOU represents our pledge to continue working together to attract investment, accelerate binational development, and strengthen the manufacturing ecosystem that sustains thousands of families on both sides of the border.”
Humberto Martínez is president of INDEX Nacional. He said the MOU highlighted reinforces a long-term strategy for competitiveness.
“The future of our region will not be built in isolation, but through collaboration,” Martínez. “This partnership with COSTEP ensures that our industry continues to expand, innovate, and generate opportunities in a global environment increasingly shaped by nearshoring.”
