Above: Haiti (CJ Photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, along with its African, Latin American and Caribbean Fund, have announced a $100 million equity investment to help InterEnergy Holdings develop cleaner and more efficient energy sources in the Caribbean and expand operations in Latin America.

Th fund is a joint investment to help IEH, a company focused on the regional power sector and one of the leading private investors in power generation in the Dominican Republic.

It will be directly involved in the development of power solutions for Haiti and in the Dominican Republic.

“IFC’s equity investment together with the IFC ALAC Fund, is a natural evolution of our long-term partnership with IFC, which was a lender to IEH portfolio companies in the past,” said Rolando Gonzalez Bunster, IEH’s Chairman and CEO. “We will work together to bring more reliable, cost-efficient and cleaner energy production to the Dominican Republic and also plan to be directly involved in the development of power sector solutions for Haiti, facilitating economic development in the island of Hispaniola.”

IEH will use the funding to expand its existing operations and develop new projects to diversify the Dominican Republic’s energy resources, both increasing the country’s capacity to import liquefied natural gas and developing green energy solutions such as wind and solar power.

“In the Caribbean power sector, IEH has an established track record of achieving both high developmental impact and commercial success,” said Jean Philippe Prosper, IFC Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. “This investment fits with IFC’s strategy in the Caribbean to improve competitiveness through improved access to infrastructure services, and mitigate climate change by developing cleaner energy sources.”