Mexico's first-ever energy auction will award contracts priced in U.S. dollars in an effort to make the country's newly opened power industry more attractive to developers.

"Contracts in dollars are simply easier," Leonardo Beltran, secretary of Mexico's Energy Ministry, said in an interview. "The auction will be the first exercise to test Mexico's power appetite. It will help us to understand the supply and demand of energy."

The Mexican peso has tumbled 13 percent against the dollar this year, and contracts priced in the more stable U.S. currency will help developers prepare proposals and arrange financing, the Energy Secretary said.

Mexico is restructuring its energy markets in an effort to spur billions in investment, a historic overhaul approved in 2013 to open state-run monopolies in the oil and electricity industries. It's seeking proposals for traditional thermal-power projects, co-generation facilities and clean energy for the auction scheduled for March.

Final rules for the event will be issued next month. Developers are waiting for details such as possible tax benefits for renewable energy or different ceiling prices for each energy source. The country is planning at least one auction a year, Beltran said.