Power crisis in the Dominican Republic despite rising renewablesCEFR B1
19 Dec 2025
Adapted from Guest Contributor, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Rush Energy Drink, Unsplash
The Dominican Republic has boosted renewable energy to 25 percent of its electricity mix, but operational issues in the grid are producing notable waste and higher fossil fuel use. On August 19, 2025 the National Interconnected Electrical System reached a historic peak of 3,950 megawatts. A brief shutdown of Punta Catalina 2 after maintenance failures helped trigger a national supply crisis. President Luis Abinader declared a state of emergency and on September 8 signed a decree to accelerate procurement and raise generation capacity.
Between January and July 2025 curtailment ranged between 10,000 and 18,000 MWh and peaked at more than 50 percent in June. Curtailment forces renewable companies to stop selling energy and pushes distribution firms to buy more expensive thermal generation. Dominican law gives renewables preferential injection rights under Decree 65-23 and Articles 199 and 202, and tests called VEROPE measure thermal performance and define Technical Minimum Power (PMT).
Data from the Coordinating Body show several plants operating above their PMT in weekly programming for September 6–12, 2025. Critics say thermal plants run with wide comfort margins that reduce space for renewables and raise costs and emissions. Stakeholders call for enforcing rules, better planning and oversight, and more investment in storage and transmission.
Difficult words
- curtailment — forced stopping of electricity generation sales
- preferential — given first or better treatment than others
- procurement — process of buying goods or services
- generation — production of electricity or power
- thermal — related to heat or hot processes
- oversight — supervision to ensure rules are followed
- transmission — moving electricity across the power network
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- What effects might a national supply crisis have on households and small businesses where you live?
- How could better planning and oversight reduce costs and emissions in an electricity system like the one described?
- Do you think investing in more storage and transmission is important for renewable energy? Why or why not?
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