Large-Scale Wind Farm Commissioned In the Dominican Republic
published on 12 June 2019
A 50 MW wind farm, PECASA, was commissioned on this 12 June in Monte Cristi Province by the President of the Dominican Republic. The project is cofinanced by AFD’s private sector financing arm, PROPARCO, with USD 15m. It is led by the Dominican company Parques Eólicos del Caribe, a subsidiary of the French company Akuo Energy.
This first operation by PROPARCO in the renewable energies sector in the Dominican Republic is in line with its overall strategy to support climate-compatible investments in developing countries. With 190 GWh of electricity a year, it will have significant impacts on the quality of the electricity supply of the country and region. 150,000 households in Monte Cristi Province will be supplied.
The commissioning of this farm is also an important milestone for the country’s energy transition and the adoption of a low-carbon path: it will avoid the emission of greenhouse gases by some 142,000 teq CO2 a year. This initiative therefore directly contributes to the achievement of the Dominican Republic’s emission reduction targets: 25% less by 2030, and 25% of renewables by 2025.
Finally, the farm has created 350 jobs during the construction and 180 permanent jobs.
The commissioning ceremony organized by Akuo Energy gathered key project stakeholders, including local companies and international partners, the authorities from the Dominican power sector, the French Ambassador, Didier Lopinot, and his economic advisor, Emilio Piriz. AFD’s Director in Santo Domingo, Sandra Kassab, as well as the international development banks IFC (arranger), FMO accompanied by the Dutch Ambassador, DEG represented by the German Ambassador and PROPARCO, represented by Valéry Vicini, were also present.
