The IDB is committed to electric mobility with one of the first 'electrolineras' in Latin America in the Dominican Republic

It's three in the afternoon in Punta Cana and the sun is beating down.

At the Evergo Connect electric vehicle charging station, on the side of the road that crosses the city, the solar panels located in the shape of a roof manage to generate a significant part of the energy of the 29 ultra-fast chargers that can handle a maximum power of up to 225 kW.

The charging time can be up to 10 minutes and the company, a subsidiary of the Dominican group InterEnergy, is betting that while this happens, consumers can take advantage of carrying out other activities.

In the neighboring building there is a cafeteria, a pizzeria, a car rental, a children's area, a minimarket, an electric vehicle exhibition and sales area, and even meeting rooms.

It is the first

electric station

- as it has been named because it replaces a gas station - in the Dominican Republic that only uses energy from the sun and one of the pioneers in Latin America.

It began operating in December 2023 and works as a pilot to collect information on consumer behavior and see if it is possible to replicate this experience in other places in the Dominican Republic or Latin America.

“This is the first of all that we have done and understand, one of the first in the Latin American region.

We would like to see if we replicate this in another place, not necessarily the same, but to see the concepts that best suit the different places that we can find in these spaces,” says Roberto Herrera, executive director of InterEnergy Group.

Solar panels of the photovoltaic plant in Punta Cana.CHELO CAMACHO

The initiative is part of a program financed by IDB Invest, the private investment arm of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) with the aim of promoting the energy transition in the region.

“One of our most relevant objectives is to combat climate change.

With all our investments we look to see if we can support this challenge.

In this case, we are supporting the transformation of Dominican Republic vehicles into electric vehicles,” explains Elizabeth Robberechts, head of the Infrastructure and Energy Division at IDB Invest.

And there was light

The joint work began three years ago and in 2022 the financing agreement was signed between the IDB and Bank of America with the Dominican company.

In total, 40 million dollars were provided to enable the

electric station

project , a storage plant and the electrification of Saona Island, located southeast of the Dominican Republic.

Of these, 32 came from multilateral banks.

The last initiative to begin operating was photovoltaic park 3, also located in Punta Cana, with about 25 megawatts of installed capacity and about 40 megawatt hours of energy storage, through batteries.

“This translates into the possibility of having steady energy for a period of up to four hours, which is the battery life,” explains Roberto Herrera.

Roberto Herrera, manager of InterEnergy Group in the Dominican Republic, at the Evergo Connect electric station, on March 9.CHELO CAMACHO

But without a doubt, the most exciting project is the one carried out on Saona Island.

About 600 people live there and until 2022 they did not have access to electricity.

They used small generators and cooked with firewood, with the effect of the emissions that this generates and deforestation.

The InterEnergy group, through the electrical company CEPM (Consorcio Energético Punta Cana-Macao) installed a photovoltaic plant with energy storage on the island, which today allows them to have electricity supply 24 hours a day, 364 days a year.

“The island is visited by around a million tourists a year who go to enjoy the beaches for the day and both of them and the families who live there were in the dark.

Thanks to this project, those who are permanently on the island now have electricity, but this additionally entailed other interventions.

The island also already has drinking water, thanks to a water desalination plant that uses renewable energy and the project also included changing the stoves that were previously used with coal or wood for new devices that use electric energy,” says Herrera. .

“What was done on Saona Island helped an isolated population on Sauna Island receive clean energy for their daily lives,” says Elizabeth Robberechts, and indicates that today IDB Invest is working on other initiatives of this type in other areas of the region.

“We are working with several energy companies to make investments to change their electricity grids and install renewable energy.

In each country the priorities are a little different.

For example, in Belize we are doing something similar and we also have a project in Peru for mini solar energy networks with batteries to bring clean energy to people living in the Amazon,” comments the IDB Invest executive.

A man charges his car at the Evergo Connect electric station, in Punta Cana.CHELO CAMACHO