On Sunday, 3 February 2019, President Danilo Medina visited the Monte Grande dam site in southwestern Barahona to check for himself on the construction progress. Media reports say the President was annoyed when he saw there a notice that said it would be finished in July 2019. He urged the prompt completion of the dam in his conversation with Olgo Fernandez, director of the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (Indrhi), and the Monte Grande dam consortium representatives. The Monte Grande consortium is comprised of the Brazilian construction company, Andrade Gutiérrez, S. A. and the Dominican company, Servicios de Ingeniería, S. A.
Once in operation, the Monte Grande dam is expected to have a significant economic impact on the southwestern Enriquillo region where it is located, having been requested by the local population for over 20 years. The government has reporting a US$250 million investment.
The reservoir at the dam will store 350 million cubic meters of water that will come in from the Yaque del Sur River, and benefit the communities in Barahona, Bahoruco and Independencia province with drinking water 24 hours a day. In addition more than 700,000 tareas (1 tarea = 629 square meters) of land will be irrigated by the dam.
Read more in Spanish:
El Dia
Presidencia
5 February 2019
