Dominican Republic announces renewable energy boom in 3 years

The Dominican Republic’s energy transition is gaining momentum under the current government. In three years, renewable electricity generation capacity has increased from 555.5 MW to 1,126.25 MW, an increase of over 103%. This development has been driven mainly by a series of reforms and strategic investments in photovoltaic projects, currently under construction with a total capacity of over 1,300 MW, distributed across different regions of the country.
President Luis Abinader played a key role in the promulgation of Decree 65-23, which updates the regulations regarding the Renewable Energy Promotion Law (Ley 57-07). This decree aims to increase transparency and reduce bureaucracy in renewable energy contracting processes, thus attracting huge local and foreign investments. In 2023, these investments reached 1,071 million dollars, placing the energy sector at the top of the national economy, alongside tourism.

International Rankings and Recognition

According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance’s (BNEF) Climatescope 2023 report, the Dominican Republic has risen from 45th to 43rd place in the world in terms of attractiveness for foreign investment in the energy transition. Among emerging markets, the country has risen from 22nd to 20th place out of 110 countries, and regionally from 7th to 6th place in Latin America and the Caribbean. This improvement reflects significant progress in the social, political, economic and environmental spheres.
International organizations such as the Latin American Energy Organization (Olade) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) have recognized this progress. In 2023, the World Economic Forum ranked the Dominican Republic 88th in the Global Energy Transition Index, with a score of 50.7, the country’s best result in nine years.

Strategic partnerships and international cooperation

The Ministry of Energy and Mining, headed by Antonio Almonte, has committed to strengthening international cooperation in order to improve the country’s image and coordinate cooperation in strategic energy areas. Minister Almonte was recently invited by the European Union to explore cooperation opportunities through initiatives such as the Global Gateway and the Euroclima program. In addition, the Dominican Republic joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance, paving the way for climate finance led by the United Kingdom and Canada.
The country has also been selected as one of four pilot projects for the Energy Transition Accelerator (ETA), a financial platform supported by the United States in partnership with the Bezos and Rockefeller Foundations. The reforms and investments being undertaken are aimed at making the energy system more reliable, affordable and resilient. The energy transition in the Dominican Republic is not only an economic transformation, but also a commitment to future generations, influencing the country’s perception on the international stage.