IDB provides grant for geothermal study in Dominican Republic
Alexander Richter
30 Nis 2016
The Inter-American Development Bank provides a grant of $200,000 for a study on the geothermal potential in four areas in the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean.
Reported locally, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has announced a $200,000 grant to the Energy and Mines Ministry of the Dominican Republic for a 12-month study of the country’s geothermal potential.
Geothermal energy can be used in agriculture to stabilize the temperature of greenhouses in cold areas of the country and to develop geoparks for tourism.
France National Geologic Survey (BRGM) executive Philippe Gombert and Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) representative Flora Montealegre signed the agreement, witnessed by Energy and Mines minister Antonio Isa, and French ambassador Jose Gomez.
The “Specific Agreement to Evaluate the Geothermal Potential of the Dominican Republic” aims to determine where there’s enough high geothermal energy to produce electricity in areas defined as priority and secondary in 1980.
As part of the planned study, the following areas are to be researched:
- Yayas de Viajama – Constanza (central) geothermal energy potential of high interest and priority.
- Canoa, areas of San Juan de la Maguana (west) and geothermal secondary interest to high energy, presenting some positive elements but were not tested enough to select as priority areas and need additional work.
- Enriquillo (southwest) areas and of Pedro Santana which don’t have favorable characteristics to the existence of high-energy geothermal reservoirs but which point to important deposits at rates of low (<100 °) or medium (<150 °) energy;
- San Jose de las Matas (northcentral) and the geothermal Surzacuyo, is of “very uncertain interest.”
Source: Dominican Today
