Electricity from municipality

In a condo complex they must provide you with a copy of all the readings and their calculations of the charges & consumption.  It is well known there are a few complexes who abuse the system-so beware.

Yes generally there should be back up generators-normally based on fuel driven engines which stinks the place out, makes a lot of noise and if your misfortune is the have a condo close or over and above the backup room be prepared for noise and smells.  You should not be charged for this as this should be included in the your rental.

If yo have a house, where I am currently, the back up power here uses a series high powered batteries.  Very efficient, last for hours if you're not extravagant with the electricity and no small and no noise.  As a property owner, much cheaper to install.  When the electricity comes back on the batteries are automatically recharged-no noise.

Hope this helps

Ducketts

The electricity company posts their price rates based on kwh of usage per month.  All the govt distributors Edeeste Edesur and Edenorte charge the same rates. It is a stepped up formula that gets much more expensive the more you use! 

These are not exact, I don't have a bill in front of me, the first 200 or 300 are like 4.86 pesos per kwh.  Then jumps to 7.86 and eventually at 700 kwh it jumps to 11.86 per kwh.   

So if possible you work to stay under 700 kwh.

I have air conditioning and use it every damn night.  It's too hot!  But I bought the new energy efficient models and it does save money!

I didn't know they had website with posted rates. Can someone send me one of two links?

much appreciated.
Mel

I found this link https://edenorte.com.do/tarifas/ but doesn't show the rate and their PDF has broken url.

I can't find it either.  But my rates I posted above are close.  Plus you are charged a small account fee about 136 Rd a month.   You can calculate more or.less the costs.

The issue with a complex billing is that you are guaranteed to be over the 700 kwh billing rate always.

thanks.. very helpful.

So those companies are government owned?

also I check the average price of electricity in US and based on many website it says it is 18cents per kwh.

then I take your average planner to be 12cents that is not such a big difference.

I thought people complained that DR is so much more expensive. I guess maybe the A/C units aren't as efficient.

Most of us are in the HIGHEST  bracket so dont average the price.  Consider it at the highest and you will not go wrong. Its pretty easy to get to 700 kwh a month of usage.  So at almost  12 pesos per KWH that is almost  23 cents per kwh.  Now add in most things are not energy efficient here and its hot  6 months of the year and damn hot the other  6 months!   LOL 

For those with good income this many not be much. In a country where the average wage is about US  300 a month and this is a big deal. Its all relative honey.

Is it worth replacing the AC units with more powerful ones? Do they sell high efficiency ones here in DR?

Yes they do sell many energy efficient models.  It's been worth it for me both at home and in my offices.

Meleger, I don't know your situation but have you considered a solar installation?  Save all the money on replacing everything with energy efficient units and buy a solar system instead.  Again, I don't know where you are. environmental conditions etc.  Just asking whether you have thought about it?

In my case I don't worry about the efficiency side anymore as I cannot use all of the energy I produce.  It has been more than cost effective for me.

From my last ednorte bill
200kwh X 4.44
100 kwh X 6.97
340kwh X 10.86
After that I dont know where it goes!

If you think that is high, it's 14.32 per kwh plus a service charge in Bavaro (CEPM).

It will increase gradually year by year up to 2026 from October as part of the electricity pact which removes the subsidies paid to the EDEs.

The dismantling of the electricity subsidy begins in October

Electricity rates will be reviewed every three months
The plan will run until December 2026

https://www.diariolibre.com/economia/el … EF28875256

The Superintendency of Electricity (SIE) ordered that from next month a transition rate regime be applied for regulated users, with the aim of progressively dismantling the cross subsidy that is applied to electricity rates.

Resolution 075-2021 of the SIE updates the tariff transition schedule agreed in the Electricity Pact signed in February of this year. Starting in October, electricity prices will be reviewed every three months and will be variable because they will take into account the cost of energy and power, the transmission toll and even the exchange rate.

“If the variation in the Average Purchase Price and the exchange rate is upwards, all the tranches of the transitional tariff structure will be adjusted upwards. On the other hand, if the variation is downward, it will be transferred, as long as the transition rate levels are above the floor of the reference rate ”, indicates the Electricity Pact signed this year that serves as the basis for the decision of the SE..........

This will not be popular but and the bigger users will have to foot most of the bill. And the EDEs need to start becoming more efficient and improve distribution and get everybody contributing. I don't pay a penny nor do many people in the campo but again we don't have good transmission lines and low voltage and the EDEs never come out to repair anything including rotting poles so locals cut down trees and fix temporary poles as a replacement to continue the supply.

And we are in the situation where the new Punta Catalina coal powered plants are running out of coal due to a bad agreement by the previous government and emergency supplies are having to be sought. Add to that the problems worldwide with natural gas supply such that there are fuel supplies with some generating units and power cuts as a result.

Unbelievable is the continuing mess in electricity supply and distribution which still is not resolved even after a misguided 3 billion dollar crooked investment in a coal fired plant.

EDEs need to shake out the corrupt and become lean and efficient and collect what is due and supply everybody properly assuming the power plants are working. The suppliers need to do the same and I am at a loss what is done with the big red herring of Catlina.

Add to the list of problems this government has had to face not to mention covid.

DominicanadaMike wrote:

If you think that is high, it's 14.32 per kwh plus a service charge in Bavaro (CEPM).

Private supply is probaably the best option for expats now if they can get it rather than the EDEs or solar if they can afford that investment.

In Las Terrenas they had a private supplier that was costly but relaible. The locals revolted. Now they have EDENORTE and whilst cheaper they also get the cuts.

In LT, we have Luz y Fuerza and pay 14.95 per kWh if you use more than 200 kWh in the month. Less than 200 kWh of usage gets you a 50% discount.

And if our service is considered reliable, I feel for the rest of you!

This is going to get very very ugly if we have to start paying even more for such horrendous service!   

I feel for  so many areas where it is already bad!

I live in Central Texas and our rates vary from $7.50 to about $12.00.  Just a comparison to the US.

Per kWh?????

it can't be, i live in Houston I pay about 11 cents per Kw

The supply in Las Terrenas from Luz y Fuerza was excellent until they had to use Edenorte supply and not their own generation plant.

The government subsizes a large chunk for very poor management at the Edes. Businesses also pay too little and many avoid paying altogether.

Sorting this problem out has been too hot a potatoe for past governments hence the continuing mess.

We should all pay our fair share including me but we are told that they dont charge us in our part of the campo.

Subsidies are recipies for problems. They hide inefficiency which is endemic in DR public services and service industries and supports low pay and low quality of service.

sberger50 wrote:

I live in Central Texas and our rates vary from $7.50 to about $12.00.  Just a comparison to the US.

That can't be right per kWh - unless you've converted that to pesos!

And IF that is converted to pesos, then also convert the average wage so you get this in perspective.

It isn't just the cost it's also about the buying power of the average people!

It is .07 to .12 Kwh.  They post it a little different.  My bad!

The power cuts these days are getting bad. Over six hours for me so far today.

The demand for electricity in the country has grown such that the highest total demand ever was hit in recent days.

This is not surprising as the country develops with many new properties being constructed replacing timber and metal roofed homes with one light bulb.

There was zero proper planning by the past governments and no spare capacity with the many old poorly mantained generating units breaking down from time to time and out of use and an inadequate distribution system maintained by the inefficient subsidised Edes.

The past government invested in a vastly overpriced 3 billion dollar coal plant which now has coal supplies secured but that does not solve the structural problems with electricity in DR and more generation is badly needed. The government has today committed to even more additional generation but that will take time to happen.

Government to buy 600 megawatts of electricity next week

President Luis Abinader described the blackouts as a disgrace

https://www.diariolibre.com/economia/go … HC29097462

President Luis Abinader reported that 600 megawatts of electricity from non-renewable sources will be purchased next week to be added to the national energy system, which would be available in 12 and 18 months. Additionally, at the end of 2021, 800 megawatts will be awarded, which were tendered at the beginning of his government.

The president criticized that the State does not have a generation with ease "because there was no provision in the past." In that sense, he argued that "blackouts are a disgrace that we have had for many years."

At least the President is being quite frank about this continuous mess and not brushing it under the carpet as has been the case in the past. I see the PLD is trying to deflect suggesting the lack of coal is the problem but more arrived today and they had a few weeks left in stock so that was not the key problem. The old other plants are, along with under capacity still and lack of generation in the north of the country makes life there worse. Just plain bad planning and management for so many years before the country has a leadership that says it will take action.

Personally I think this is an opportunity when they should move to more renewable energy and offer big incentives to potential suppliers.

And soon the govt support of the EDE's  is being dropped.  Soon no electricity and higher prices!  This won't be fun!

Almonte guarantees they will put an end to the deficit in the electricity sector

https://listindiario.com/la-republica/2 … -electrico

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Antonio Almonte, guaranteed that this dependence on the State will end blackouts, corruption and waste in the electricity sector.

He explained that for decades blackouts in the country had two fundamental reasons:

1. One was the limitation of electricity generation capacities.

2. Santo Domingo, RD and the financial blackouts, produced by the inability of the
    distributors to pay the current bill to the generators.

In this sense, the engineer Almonte said that, to prevent this from continuing to happen, the distributors (Edenorte, Edesur and Edeeste) in the last five months are paying all their current bills to the generators before 30 days.

"The payment of these invoices has avoided financial blackouts, and the generators receive the payment corresponding to their production and sale and that allows the market to always be sufficiently supplied," he said.

He said that this management works to reduce the financial costs of the distributors, debts that increased with default at a rate, sometimes inconvenient, that resulted in a higher financial cost.

Unfortunately now the problem is the generators can't meet the demand along with getting the supply to parts of the country with problems of infrastructure.

Sorting the Edes out is key so that they can perform their role distributing the power to all efficiently at best price without government subsidy. But more generation is needed too and quickly.

At least the problem is being discussed openly and the spin that Punta Catalina would solve all the problems is exposed as political hype.

Sadly this is just more political talk until we actually see results.

Acknowledging the problem is always the first step towards a solution.  Now if only we can implement more solar energy, on all the new construction and in the many open lands.

There's an 11.11 rate I believe, but we have never gotten that high…

Definitely worth buying direct solar pool pumps and AC…but, we opted for 80% solar to still have grid tied…at the time when we got our solar AC the 100% version couldn't be connected to city/back up power for night time use. (220 power —dual phase required)

For comparison:
Our regular inverter AC runs 1500-1800w/ hour and our Solar AC runs 500w/ hour tops.

Highest rate with the EDE system is 14.86 Rd per kwh

Yikes!!!

KarinyCarlos wrote:

Acknowledging the problem is always the first step towards a solution.  Now if only we can implement more solar energy, on all the new construction and in the many open lands.

Authorities of the electricity sector sign seven contracts for the development of renewable energy projects

https://listindiario.com/economia/2021/ … renovables

The Minister of Energy and Mines and the Executive Vice President of the Unified Council of Electricity Distribution Companies led the signing of seven contracts for renewable energy projects with national and foreign companies.

The investment for these projects will exceed US $ 485 million and it is expected that they would contribute 420 net megawatts to the system and could reach 544 peak megawatts of clean energy.

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Antonio Almonte, considered that these contracts stimulate investment in energy, generate confidence and fulfill the promise of change in the sector, said a statement.

He indicated that the construction of these projects will begin shortly in the different municipalities of the country.

The note indicates that the companies are planning to develop their photovoltaic projects of between 42 and 120 megawatts in Azua, Peravia, San Cristóbal, San Pedro de Macorís, Monte Plata and La Victoria, in Santo Domingo Norte........

The past government spent $3 billion on a coal powered plant producing 700Mw - so we are told.

Renewables here from the private sector at a cost of $485m giving 420 - 544 Mw!

Questions to be asked in Odebrecht 3?

Why doesn't the DR install the wind generators that are all over Texas.  All you need is wind, and it produces 24 hours a day.  Many cities in Texas get all of their power from solar and the wind generators.  Lots of wind on the island, and it could make a lot of energy.  Maybe there is a reason?

7 new renewable energy projects.  That almost always means solar and wind!

This is good news!!

There are wind farms already in the south west south of Enriquillo, south of Bani and near Puerto Plata. Solar farms too with the largest in Monte Plata province.

We just completed our purchase of a home in Seahorse Ranch Friday.  SHR has 24/7 electrical service with generator backup and we will be paying about $0.26/kwh.  That contrasts with our home in the US where we pay $0.083 (Tennessee).  The ability to have 24/7 stable power is worth it.  To reduce consumption we are immediately replacing all 5 AC units which are 20+ years old and extremely energy inefficient.  We also have over 100 halogen lights in the home, 20-50 W each.  Switching to LED 2-7w lamps.  Finding ways to save energy so there is more to go around!