Colombian technicians present work plan for hydrocarbon exploration in the Dominican Republic

The following is a machine translation of a Ministry of Energy and Mines release

SANTO DOMINGO. The Minister of Energy and Mines, Joel Santos Echavarría, held a meeting with six Colombian technicians from the Agustín Codazzi Geographic Institute (IGAC), in order to present a work plan to carry out hydrocarbon prospecting studies in various areas of the Dominican Republic.

The minister, accompanied by the Vice Minister of Hydrocarbons, Walkiria Caamaño, said that, as more accurate measurements are obtained, progress can be made in the search and analysis of possible hydrocarbon deposits in the country.

"These projects also contribute to the work we do from a mining perspective, and technologies have been advancing, allowing for more accurate, advanced measurements in less time, which helps us to move forward more quickly in the analysis of deposits," he explained.

He indicated that all these studies are carried out under the highest international standards, which reduces the time for analysis and work, since more timely information is available. He thanked them for the visit and urged them to continue working in collaboration with projects in this field.

Meanwhile, the IGAC Geophysics Manager, Enrique Torres, said that activities are being carried out between the Dominican Republic and Colombia to share knowledge in the measurement of Earth's gravity. This will help identify key points to continue with the analysis of the country's subsoil and advance future studies.

"In order to do our work, we have to rely on the complete network that you already have, mainly so that you can acquire the knowledge of how we do things in Colombia. We rely on the international methodology of Sirgas and the objective is that you continue with that identification from now on," said Torres.

Torres said that, according to the country's geological studies, there is a potential interest in hydrocarbon analysis and extraction in the northwestern part of the Dominican nation.

Field work

In coordination with the MEM, the commission began field work on Sunday, the 14th of this month and will remain in the country until the 29th to identify the main areas that possess these natural resources, so that the Dominican Republic can acquire all the technical and training knowledge to continue with this process.

The meeting was attended by the Director of Hydrocarbon Exploration and Production, Nisael Dirocié; Luis Torres, head of the Hydrocarbon Exploration Technical Department; the geologist Gabriel Vásquez; the Director of International Relations, Gustavo Mejía Ricart; and the Head of International Cooperation, Helen Pérez, on behalf of the MEM.

Regarding the technical team from Colombia, Leidy Sepúlveda, leader of Gravimetry and Geoidal Model, participated; and the professionals in Gravimetry and Geomagnetism, Daniela Martínez, Alejandro Tavarez, Jean Villafañe and Rodrigo Hernández.