As part of the country’s plan to put up $770 million worth of wind farms through 2015 , the Dominican Republic unveiled its first on Tuesday.
In the western town of Juancho of the Pedernales Province, President Leonel Fernandez revealed the 14-turbine wind farm, saying it can produce 33 megawatts of electricity an hour.
The investment into the alternate means of energy is part of the country’s attempt to end its dependence on nonrenewable sources like petroleum.
The wind farm is the first on the island shared Haiti, and cost about $100 million. It is expected to expand to generate 70 megawatts/hr.
Winds farms like this will each allow the Dominican Republic to reduce petroleum imports by at least 200,000 barrels a year. Currently, the country imports about 155,00 barrels of oil per day, the majority of which comes from Venezuela.
For decades, the country’s oil-run electricity sector had been in crisis, with customers suffering numerous blackouts over the years.
