ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC – The Dominica government will seek parliamentary approval on Friday, giving the Finance Minister Dr. Irving McIntyre the authority to obtain a bank guarantee from the National Bank of Dominica for EC$13.5 million (One ECC dollar=US$0.37 cents) for the construction of a geothermal energy plant.
The plant will be situated in Laudat, a small village in the interior of the island, and the Roosevelt Skerrit government said that the funds are to secure the commitments made in the project financing agreement signed with the Geothermal Power Company of Dominica that is owned by Ormat Technologies Inc of Nevada, for the construction of the geothermal power plant.
The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 28) that ended in Dubai earlier this month and aims to stabilize electricity tariffs, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and responsibly harness the island’s rich geothermal resources.
The agreement stipulates that Ormat Technologies Inc. will finance, construct, operate, and maintain the power plant and geothermal wells for 25 years.
However, Dominica will retain ownership of invested assets, including wells, lands, etc.
At the contract’s conclusion, the power plant and acquired assets will be transferred to the government of Dominica.
The government said that, to date, it has succeeded in confirming the viability of the Roseau Valley geothermal resource and has taken steps toward commercial operations.
It said seven geothermal wells have been drilled in Laudat, Wotton Waven, and Trafalgar, northeast of the capital. It provided a geothermal resource capable of supporting 10 megawatts of electricity generation in Laudat.
The government said it has also designed and tendered to construct a new efficient and resilient electricity transmission network, connecting the geothermal power plant to the hydroelectric power plants and to the national grid from Roseau Valley to Fondcole, on the capital’s outskirts.
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