June 2019, Vol. 246, No. 6
Features
New Gas Pipeline Planned in Dominican Republic
The main objective of the Dominican Republic’s Energetic Plan 2010-2025 is to reduce the import of oil by replacing it with natural gas by a considerable amount.
For this reason, the generating company AES Andrés, a subsidiary of AES American, will begin construction of 28 miles (45 km) of gas pipeline after the signing of an agreement with mining company Barrick Gold.
The two companies have signed a 10-year natural gas supply contract with AES Andres DR, S.A. in the Dominican Republic that will enable the conversion of the Quisqueya I power generation facility from heavy fuel oil to natural gas. PVDC (Pueblo Viejo Dominican Corp.) is a joint venture between Barrick (60%) and Goldcorp, Inc. (40%).
Through this agreement, AES Andrés will use 12 TBtu of its storage and regasification terminal to supply the generator Quisqueya I, owned by the mining company, located in San Pedro de Macorís, east of the Dominican capital.
The section will cover from Boca Chica, to San Pedro de Macorís. The completion of the work is scheduled for the second half of 2019 with an investment of $100 million.
With this project, AES will convert the 215 MW Quisqueya I thermal plant, which currently operates with fuel oil to a combined cycle of natural gas, with an investment of $7.5 million. It is an investment that significantly exceeds Barrick’s 15% hurdle rate.
Quisqueya is owned and operated by PVDC and supplies power to the Pueblo Viejo mine.
The Ministry of Energy pointed out the pipeline opens the possibilities of supply to other power stations in the area, which have installed capacity totaling 700 MW.
Coinciding with this, the Dominican Republic will expand the LNG segment in its energy matrix by reducing electricity generation costs and contributing to the national strategy for the promotion of production using natural gas while reducing the cost of energy for consumers and consumers. industries.
The main section of the pipeline begins at the zero-rated valve station, owned by AES, located at the Punta Caucedo terminal in Boca Chica, in the province of Sato Domingo. The same right-of-way as that of the Los Mina gas pipeline will be used.
The total length of the duct is 30 miles (48 km) with a diameter of 20 inches and a maximum allowable operating pressure of 725.19 psig (50 bar).
The project includes 12-inch branches required for interconnection with the Sultana del Este power plant. It crosses about 1.2 miles (1.9 km) at the entrance to the town of San Pedro de Macoris.
According to the Ministry of Energy latest data, the Dominican Republic, in 2017, generated more electricity with natural gas (34.7%), representing a 10.4% growth rate over the previous year. Petroleum-based fuels supply 33.6% of the market.
The Dominican Republic currently has installed capacity of about 4,070 megawatts (MW), with 3,657.3 MW belonging to the SENI, 351.7 MW to Isolated Systems and 62.90 MW to private investments under the Net Metering mechanism.
The province of San Pedro de Macorís has the largest installed capacity, representing 25.9% of the total, followed by Santo Domingo and San Cristóbal with 19.7% and 8.9%, respectively. Thermal generation was used to inject 814.1 gigawatt hours (GWh), or 73.6% of the total.
The thermal generation composition was covered by diesel engines 247.65 GWh (22.4%) combined cycle 244.50 GWh (22.1%), steam turbines 207.95 (18.8%) and gas turbines 113.99 GWh (10.3%). P&GJ
Overview
Length: 30.8 miles, 49.6 km
Investment: $100 million
Diameter main span: 20-inch
Operational pressure max: 725.19 psig (50 bars)
Diameter of branches: 12-inch
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