Joel Santos: We need to work on coordination and renewable storage

Santo Domingo.- According to the Minister of Energy and Mines, Joel Santos, the Dominican Republic has several renewable energy projects under development. Still, he understands that the country must continue to advance in managing this energy to make the best use of it.

“Renewable energy is very important and positive, but it also requires greater coordination between the different energy sources in order to take advantage of them,” he said while leading an event on renewable energy, which featured Francesco La Camera, director general of the International Renewable Energy Agency, as a speaker.

He said that with the introduction of renewable energy, the energy supply will continue to increase, and the matrix will diversify. However, as the matrix increases and diversifies, more work will be required to coordinate each energy source.

Santos also pointed out that the storage of these energies must be worked on significantly.

“As our renewable energy is mainly solar, although we also have wind power, storage sources are required, and we are working on this aspect so that it can be used during peak hours,” he said.

He recalled that renewable energy has experienced key growth in the country, going from 555 megawatts installed in 2020 to more than 1,300 megawatts last year.

“Growth has doubled. In addition to the 600 megawatts that will come online this year, it is expected to double again by 2028,” the Minister of Energy reiterated.

Acceleration

At the event, Francesco La Camera emphasized that Latin American and Caribbean countries, such as the Dominican Republic, must accelerate their transition to renewable energy.

He also pointed out that the Dominican Republic has great potential in renewable energy.

“We have to accelerate our progress if we want to triple the installed capacity of renewable energy,” he explained.

He said tripling the installed capacity would mean more energy by 2030 and significantly reduced CO2 emissions.

He said Latin America and the Caribbean must install twice as much renewable energy as Irena obtained last year.

The renewable energy expert also highlighted the importance of defining energy regulations. “We cannot delay regulation.”