DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

Most of the Dominican Republic has recently suffered rolling blackouts that are explained as the result of the shutdown of one of the two twin plants at the Punta Catalina II power station for technical reasons. Punta Catalina is the largest power generation plant in the country, and when it has problems, these are felt.

Punta Catalina power station (Central Termoeléctrica Punta Catalina) is an operating power station of at least 752-megawatts (MW) in Punta Catalina – Hatillo, Azua, Dominican Republic. Azua is a two hour west drive from the capital city.

According to the Unified Board of Electricity Distributors (CUED), a combination of the near-record heat, the disconnection of several small generation stations for normal maintenance, and the non-programmed shutdown of Punta Catalina II all contributed to the blackouts that touched nearly the entire country.

There...