Punta Catalina is consolidated as the plant with the highest generation and the one that least leaves the system

The Punta Catalina Thermoelectric Power Plant (CTPC), the largest generation plant in the Dominican State, recorded its historical maximum production in 2025 with 4,966 gigawatt-hours (GWh) net, consolidating itself as the base pillar of the national electricity system in a context in which most of the plants in the generating park operate far below their installed capacity. The accumulated production data for the 2020-2025 period shows a sustained trajectory ranging from the 4,598 GWh recorded in the first year of operation to the peak reached last year, with a minimum of 4,363 GWh in 2021, which the plant’s own technical records attribute to system commissioning adjustments. The installation, composed of two coal units with low-emission subcritical technology, has been the subject of public debate due to its fuel source. However, the technical indicators of the last six years offer an image that contrasts with the most widespread criticisms. The plant factor —an indicator that measures the percentage of time a generating unit operates relative to its maximum installed capacity— places both Punta Catalina units at the top of the national electricity system.

A comparative analysis of the plant factor for 2024 and 2025, covering more than 30 generating facilities in the country, reveals that Punta Catalina 2 achieved a factor of 96% in 2024, the second highest value in the entire national generating park, surpassed only by Quisqueya 1. In 2025, both units maintained factors of 83% and 88% respectively, while the majority of the plants in the system operated in ranges between 10% and 50%.

Technical stops, not breakdowns The temporary service outages that have generated public criticism respond, according to the internal technical documentation of the CTPC, to scheduled maintenance required by the manufacturer’s GE protocol, the same one that governs the life cycle of similar turbines in plants around the world. In 2023, Unit No. 2 was out of service for 43 days —from June 3 to July 16— to perform maintenance on the turbine’s 24,000 operating hours. The tasks included the dismantling, inspection, and maintenance of valves and bearings of the turbogenerator, thickness inspection in the boiler —furnace, primary superheater, reheater, and economizer— and general overhauls of critical equipment with technical specialists from the manufacturer. In 2024, it was Unit No. 1 that completed its equivalent cycle, with a 45-day shutdown between June 8 and July 23. In addition to the same turbine protocol, a more exhaustive review of the boiler was carried out, with repairs in the furnace blowing zone, primary superheater, secondary superheater, and reheater. This maintenance explains the decrease in the PC1 plant factor from 88% in 2023 to 74% in 2024, a figure that recovered to 83% in 2025, confirming that the drop did not respond to any systemic failure. In 2025, both units underwent minor outages. Unit No. 1 was out of service from February 25 to March 18 for repairs to the primary superheater and boiler reheater, thickness recovery in tubes, installation of protective sleeves, and replacement of filter sleeves in the AQCS emissions control system. Unit No. 2 performed the same operations between April 12 and May 5.

Stop in progress

From March 21, 2026, until April 30, Unit No. 2 is undergoing maintenance shutdown for 48,000 hours —the major inspection cycle of the turbogenerator—, with an estimated duration of 41 days. The critical path of this intervention includes the complete disassembly of turbine valves, inspection of bearings, and the replacement of control valve discs, as expressly recommended by GE Engineering. In addition, cleaning and scanning of the walls of boiler 2’s furnace will be carried out, along with a general review of equipment with specialists from the manufacturer and inspections of electrical and instrumentation and control systems. The Unit 2 shutdown takes place while Unit 1 maintains continuous operation, ensuring that the system does not lose the entire capacity of the plant during the intervention. The plant uses subcritical technology that operates at higher temperatures and pressures than conventional boilers, which increases thermal efficiency and reduces emissions per unit of energy produced compared to previous generation coal plants. It also has emission control systems —including the AQCS filters whose sleeves were replaced during the 2025 shutdowns— designed to meet international air quality standards. The records of the last six years show, in any case, that none of the documented shutdowns responded to unplanned failures of magnitude, but to the maintenance cycle that any high-power thermoelectric plant requires to operate within the safety and efficiency standards established by its manufacturer.