Minister Joel Santos oversees progress of works at the Manzanillo Power Land Thermal Power Plant

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

MONTECRISTI . The Minister of Energy and Mines, Joel Santos, made a visit to supervise the progress of the works of the Manzanillo Power Land Natural Gas Plant, which is being built in the Pepillo Salcedo municipality, which will begin operations in 2025, and will inject 414 megawatts into the electrical grid.

During the visit, the minister said that this power plant will make great contributions to the stability of the entire electrical system of the Dominican Republic, since it will respond to the growing energy demand that the country is experiencing due to accelerated economic development and high temperatures.

He said that this combined cycle thermal power plant will produce 414 MW net, operating with liquefied natural gas designed by Siemens-Energy, and that it is part of the energy complex being developed in the province of Montecristi by the companies Energía 2000 and Elecnor.

"This visit we made with the development group Energía 2000 is to see the progress of this important project, not only for the Montecristi area, but for the country, since it will provide cheap energy and will also help stabilize the entire electrical system," said Santos Echavarría after listening to the explanations of the progress of the work by José Castillo, project manager.

The official added that this project includes the 345 KV line, which runs from Pepillo Salcedo to El Naranjo, which will be an artery to transport the energy produced in the aforementioned project to the rest of the country.

Guillermo Estrella, manager of the Energía 2000 project, also stressed that they are working day and night to ensure that the Manzanillo gas plant is operational in May 2025, and asserted that this plant will be a model of modernity and energy efficiency in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Meeting with local authorities

After touring the plant, Minister Santos held a meeting with local authorities, where he explained that it is vitally important for young people in the Montecristi area to be trained in different technical areas so that they can apply for vacancies provided by the Energía 2000 project.

In this regard, the minister recommended conducting a survey of the company's main labour needs and thus training young people in centres such as the National Institute for Technical and Professional Training (Infotep) so that they can opt for jobs.

"Once we have the technicians that the project requires, we will hold a job fair so that hundreds of professionals from the Montecristi area can be recruited. This will further boost the local economy of this province," he emphasized.

Among the municipal authorities were Senator Bernardo Alemán; the mayor of Pepillo Salcedo, Enercido Mets, and the deputy Johanny Martinez. While for Energía 2000, Arturo Santana, the manager Guillermo Estrella, and other representatives.

Minister Santos was accompanied by Martín Robles, administrator of the Dominican Electric Transmission Company (ETED); Rafael Gómez, deputy minister of Energy of the MEM; Carmen Minaya, director of the Cabinet, and Joel Ramírez Minaya, advisor to the minister.