Santo Domingo.- The CEO of Dominican Republic’s State-power companies (CDEEE) affirmed Monday that “if things are done as they should,” the country may be rid of blackouts in four years, but warned that “as long as we don’t pay, forget about that.”  

Celso Marranzini cited the case of just one customer, in an apartment building who had to pay RD$3,275,000.

“The first thing we need to solve electrical problem is invest 450 million dollars in distribution in the next three years to reduce technical and nontechnical losses,” which he defined as those caused by transformers, bad lines and frauds.

The official said to suppress the blackouts there’s a need to add plants that generate cheap and stable “base” energy, capable to replacing those which go offline for any reason. “When you add cheap base energy, and there’s no headache that San Felipe or AES leaves and you don’t know from where to replace them, the problem ends there.”

Interviewed on Z-101 FM, Marranzini said with the 50 megawatts by the company Laesa in Pimentel (northeast) and another 50 by AES Dominicana at Andres (east), only 100 were added to the system in the last seven years.

He predicted a stabilized system by 2010, when more than 400 new megawatts will start to be added.

Marranzini revealed that the units Los Mina 5 and 6 will begin operating with natural gas next year, contributing 200 megawatts, and 60 more by Laesa Pimentel in March. “and we are calling for tender offers for 130 megawatts more.”

The energy chief also revealed that the company EGE-Haina plans to raise the generation of its coal fired plant in Barahona (southwest), by repairing two or three of its units damaged, “and there we would be talking about much more than 400 megawatts still.”

Marranzini also cited two potential projects he describes as “serious” to overcome the blackouts: MAN Rectal, of the Arab Emirates and SNC Lavalín Inc., a Canadian company.