Above: Santo Domingo (Photo: DRT)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The Dominican Republic’s National Energy Commission signed a technical cooperation agreement Friday with the Inter-American Development Bank on the development of bioenergy.

The agreement will develop a series of studies on bioenergy, taking into account the country’s cooperation on biofuels with Brazil and the United States.

The project comes at a cost of $937,500, and provides for two components: additional technical studies on bioenergy and on the sustainability of agricultural projects.

According to Enrique Ramirez, president of the National Energy Commission, his agency will first look to establish the feasibility of various bioenergy projects, with a focus on the cultivation and industrialization of sugar cane.

Ramirez signed the agreement with Manuel Labrado, the Inter-American Development Bank’s representative in the Dominican Republic.

The CNE president said he would look to identify companies involved in the Dominican Republic’s agricultural market, with particular attention to those working with sugarcane and fruits and vegetables.