President Leonel Fernandez announced the country would be borrowing US$160 million from Brazil to build the northwestern aqueduct that has been on the government agenda for the past decade. Most of the money would fund the pipeline system for the aqueduct. The aqueduct construction will take three years from the scheduled start date in mid-2005. The water for the aqueduct will be channeled from the Moncion Dam and distributed over an area of 2,500 kilometers.
The DR will also borrow an additional US$131 million from Brazil to build the Pinalitos Hydroelectric Dam in the area of Constanza. The dam should be completed in 42 months. Construction was begun in September.
Eighty percent of the funding for both projects would come from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), which supports the export of goods and services from Brazil. The entity is a federal public company associated to the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade and the Brazilian contractor company, Constructora Norberto Odebrecht, a Brazilian leader in construction and engineering. CNO will undertake both the dam and aqueduct projects.
An additional US$80 million will reportedly be borrowed to build an aqueduct in Nagua in the country’s Northeast, according to Ernesto Baiardi of Odebrecht, which company will also be involved.
President Fernandez made these announcements during his trip to Brazil last week.