The Moto G Forte was leaked out some days ago by @evleaks on Twitter, and the smartphone has now been officially announced by Motorola. Strangely, the handset features exactly the same hardware as the standard Moto G, but comes with an exterior hard shell cover. This doesn’t provide water or dust resistance, but merely makes it more rugged for accidental drops.

The ‘Forte’ tag is a derivative of the word ‘fuerte’ which means strong in Spanish, so we know what Motorola is going with here. The handset is only available in Mexico at the moment via local carrier Nextel. It is being sold for 600 MXN per month for a duration of two years.

So with the Moto G Forte, customers will receive a standard Moto G encased in a grip-shell case, and shouldn’t expect any changes in performance if you’re looking to get the Forte.

There’s no word on whether the handset will be released outside Mexico, but we’re guessing it will eventually launch in developing regions across the world. However, don’t be surprised if the Moto G Forte remains an exclusive to Mexico, at least for the foreseeable future.