Dominican Republic Natural Resources Explained 2026

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC · RESOURCES

From a gold mine near Cotuí to rare earth prospects in Pedernales, here is what the Dominican Republic digs, grows and imports. The figures are dated October 2026 or earlier.

Dominican Republic resources start with gold: raw gold was the country’s top export, at US$2.39 billion from January to September 2026. ProDominicana, the export promotion agency, put total exports at US$12.02 billion for those nine months.

Farmland, forests, rivers and a small fishery supply the rest, while oil and gas are unproven and fuel is imported. This guide covers who extracts, who profits and what it costs the environment.

Conversions use DOP 61.45 per US$1 (Dominican pesos), the open.er-api.com rate of 20 October 2026 (00:02 UTC). More coverage sits on the Rio Times Dominican Republic page.

Dominican Republic Resources at a Glance

The World Bank counts 11.5 million people in 2025 and 237 people per square kilometre in 2024. Agriculture produced 4.6% of the economy in 2025, the bank reports.

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Mining added about 2% of GDP over the last decade, the Ministry of Energy and Mines said in July 2025. Yet gold supplied about one-fifth of all exports from January to September 2026, US$2,392.5 million of US$12,019 million.

That total was 12.4% higher than a year earlier, according to preliminary customs data. The resource map looks like this, with the latest dated figure for each.

• Minerals: gold and silver at Pueblo Viejo, copper and zinc at Cerro de Maimón, plus larimar, amber and rare earth prospects.
• Oil and gas: no commercial production appears in the sources checked, and the country imports its fuel.
• Farmland: agricultural land covered 51.5% of land and arable land 21.7% in 2024.
• Forests: forest covered 46.7% of land in 2024, about 22,575 square kilometres.
• Water: renewable internal freshwater was 2,092 cubic metres per person in 2022.
• Fisheries: capture fisheries landed 19,844 tonnes and aquaculture 4,200 tonnes in 2024.

The land, forest, water and fishery figures come from World Bank indicators, which draw on FAO data. For who runs the wider economy, read Who Runs Dominican Republic’s Economy in 2026.

Gold and Pueblo Viejo, the Big Earner

Pueblo Viejo sits in Sánchez Ramírez province, about 100 km northwest of Santo Domingo, and Pueblo Viejo Dominicana operates it. Newmont lists it as a joint venture of Barrick Mining Corporation (60%, operator) and Newmont (40%).

Construction began in 2008 and first production came in 2012. Barrick’s August 2026 release reports Pueblo Viejo only inside a group total, so no mine output is given here.

The mine pays the state heavily. Its president, Gisselle Valera, told a Santo Domingo industry conference that it paid US$649 million in taxes in 2025.

She put 2026 payments at US$440 million so far this year. The total since 2013 is more than US$2.6 billion, elDinero reported on 17 September 2026.

Barrick is spending about US$2.6 billion (100% basis) on a life of mine extension, with US$1.301 billion spent by 30 June 2026. The plan targets about 800,000 ounces a year over 20 years, with open pit mining to 2048.

The plan needs the Naranjo tailings storage facility, with deposition from about mid 2030 under a February 2026 technical report. Mining Weekly reported the figures on 9 October 2026.

Barrick’s second-quarter release says 570 families had been resettled and 95% of resettlement packages accepted. The release says the starter dam permit for Naranjo is targeted for the first quarter of 2027.

Copper, Nickel, Larimar and Other Minerals

Mining exports hit a record US$2.59 billion in 2025, up 52% from US$1.71 billion, Minister Joel Santos said in January 2026. Mining exports reached US$825.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2025 alone.

Copper and zinc concentrates come from Cerro de Maimón, an underground mine run by Corporación Minera Dominicana (Cormidom) near Bonao. Diario Libre reported in 2021 that Cormidom is a subsidiary of China’s Shenzhen Zhongjin Lingnan Nonfemet.

Copper exports were worth US$39.8 million in 2022, the latest year found. Pueblo Viejo also recovers copper as a by-product.

Ferronickel from the Falcondo smelter and bauxite from Pedernales were once large exports. The US Geological Survey recorded 9,913 tonnes of ferronickel in 2016, and bauxite mining at Las Mercedes was halted in June 2015.

Larimar, a blue stone mined in Barahona and named the national stone in 2011, supports about 800 miners. Output reached 195,706 pounds in 2024, and seven exporters sold over 31 tonnes worth more than US$309,000, the ministry said.

Amber and alluvial gold are also dug by hand, and about 10% of national territory holds alluvial gold deposits. The ministry counted 107 exploitation and 85 exploration concessions in July 2025, and says about 1.5% of exploration requests become viable projects.

The sector employed 16,905 people in July 2025, 10,905 formal and about 6,000 informal, by the ministry’s count. The 1971 Mining Law (Law 146-71) is being rewritten, the ministry said, and the draft would create an electronic mining registry.

Rare Earths in Pedernales

In Pedernales, in the south west, the government is exploring for rare earths, minerals used in magnets and electronics. The Ministry of Energy and Mines said on 14 September 2026 that more than 5,000 results had been analysed.

The ministry expects the first resource determination in November 2026, though Revista Mercado says late November or early December. Acento reported on 8 October 2026 that the first estimate had been planned for November.

Minister Joel Santos said the country is preparing to declare its first reserves in the first half of 2027. A pilot plant would follow, which the ministry’s July 2025 supplement put at US$500 million.

Santos said the government has spent US$40 million in 2026 and plans US$40 million more in 2027, Revista Mercado reported. The ministry welcomed a cooperation framework with the United States on critical minerals, which Revista Mercado says was signed in September 2026.

Nothing here is a proven reserve, because the work has only reached the resource stage. The reports checked do not name the companies doing the exploration.

Oil, Gas and the Fuel Import Bill

The sources checked show no commercial oil or gas production, so the country buys its fuel abroad. Fuel imports were US$3,498 million from January to September 2025, 1.4% less than a year earlier, ministry data show.

The United States supplied 81.8% of those imports, worth US$2,863.5 million. The Netherlands followed with US$177.2 million and Colombia with about US$124 million.

Renewables supplied about 25% of power generation, against a target of at least 30% in the 2022 to 2036 energy plan. Rio Times has covered US$900 million of renewable investment and a tender for 2,500 megawatts of power.

On 31 August 2025 the ministry signed a production sharing contract with the Global Min consortium for two Cibao basin blocks. The state gets at least 43% of oil revenue under the 11 year deal, which still needed congressional approval.

Geologists from the University of Texas at Austin began an Azua basin study in July 2026 that runs until March 2027. Crude oil outcrops near the Maleno wells, drilled in the late 1930s, have been evaluated before, but no reserve figure exists.

Farmland, Rice and Cacao

Agricultural land covered 51.5% of the country and arable land 21.7% in 2024, World Bank data show. Agriculture produced 4.6% of the economy in 2025, so farms matter more for food and jobs than for output.

Rice is the staple, and domestic farms produced 14.78 million quintals in 2025, up 5.24%. They supplied about 96% of the 15.44 million quintals consumed, Revista Mercado reported on 7 October 2026.

Confenagro, the farm confederation, counts about 30,000 rice producers and more than 300,000 direct and indirect jobs. A tarea, about 1/16 hectare, costs DOP 10,000 to DOP 10,200 (about US$163 to US$166) to farm, the growers’ federation says.

On Monday, 12 October 2026 President Luis Abinader said repealing Decree 693-24 does not weaken talks under DR-CAFTA, the US trade pact. The decree set a 99% tariff above a 23,300 tonne duty free US rice quota, as this Rio Times report details.

Cacao is the best known export crop. Exports were US$210.93 million in 2023, down 6.72% from US$226.14 million in 2022, Diario Libre reported in March 2024.

Water, Forests and Fisheries

Renewable internal freshwater was 2,092 cubic metres per person in 2022, and withdrawals took 30.4% of it, World Bank data show. A withdrawal rate near 30% is a sign of pressure, so supply depends on rainfall and storage.

The Ministry of Environment calls Valle Nuevo the protected area with the country’s greatest water wealth. It says it is strengthening protection of water sources in Jarabacoa and Constanza.

Forest covered 46.7% of land in 2024, about 22,575 square kilometres, World Bank data show. The Ministry of Environment says its reforestation plan planted more than 12 million trees in 2023 and 2024.

Capture fisheries landed 19,844 tonnes in 2024 and aquaculture produced 4,200 tonnes, World Bank figures based on FAO data show. That is small beside gold, and the sources checked give no figures on the catch’s value or on overfishing.

Who Profits and What It Costs Nature

Foreign companies hold the biggest mines: Barrick and Newmont at Pueblo Viejo and Cormidom at Cerro de Maimón. The state collects taxes, with US$649 million from Pueblo Viejo alone in 2025.

About 6,000 informal miners dig larimar, amber and alluvial gold, by the ministry’s count. About 30,000 rice farmers gain or lose with import rules and costs.

The expansion adds a large tailings facility at Naranjo and moves families, so water and resettlement are the risks to watch. No independent water test results could be confirmed.

Barrick said on 5 October 2026 it completed its 59th monitoring exercise, with INTEC, a Santo Domingo university, as independent third party. That is a company claim, and the results were not reviewed.

Rare earth and oil exploration add new risks that have no public assessment yet. Environmental studies come only after the first reserve declaration for rare earths.

What It Means for US Readers

Newmont, the US miner, owns 40% of Pueblo Viejo, and Barrick runs it. Barrick plans to list a minority stake in a new North American gold company with Pueblo Viejo by end 2026.

US suppliers sold 81.8% of the country’s fuel imports from January to September 2025. US rice growers watch the tariff talks under DR-CAFTA.

Washington is interested in Pedernales’s rare earths as a source closer to home than Asia, Revista Mercado reports. The same report says the US Army Corps of Engineers took part in evaluating the deposits.

Larimar jewelry buyers can note that the Larimar Barahona designation of origin was registered with WIPO, a UN agency, in 2025. Related Rio Times guides cover foreign powers and investors and the country as a whole.

What Is Not Known

The rare earth resource size is unknown until the November 2026 determination, and reserves wait for 2027. Companies doing the work and processing plans are not public in the sources checked.

It is not confirmed whether Congress approved the Cibao basin contract, or when the second oil round will open. No source checked shows commercial oil or gas production.

Pueblo Viejo’s own 2026 output is not published in Barrick’s second-quarter release, which groups it with other mines. Current output of ferronickel, bauxite and copper was not confirmed.

It is not known whether the new mining law has reached Congress. Newer 2025 export figures for cacao, banana, avocado and coffee were not confirmed either.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Dominican Republic’s most valuable natural resource?

Gold. Raw gold exports were US$2,392.5 million from January to September 2026, about one-fifth of all exports.

Who owns the Pueblo Viejo gold mine?

Barrick Mining Corporation owns 60% and operates it, and Newmont Corporation owns 40%. The mine is in Sánchez Ramírez province, about 100 km northwest of Santo Domingo.

Does the Dominican Republic produce oil?

The sources checked show no commercial oil or gas production, and fuel imports were US$3,498 million from January to September 2025. Exploration continues in the Cibao and Azua basins.

Are there rare earths in the Dominican Republic?

Exploration in Pedernales points to a possible deposit, but its size is not yet known. The ministry expects a first resource determination in November 2026 and the first reserves in the first half of 2027.

How much of the country is forest?

Forest covered 46.7% of land in 2024, about 22,575 square kilometres, World Bank data show. The Ministry of Environment says it planted over 12 million trees in 2023 and 2024.

Does the Dominican Republic grow its own rice?

Mostly. Domestic farms supplied about 96% of the 15.44 million quintals consumed in 2025.

What is larimar?

Larimar is a blue stone mined in Barahona and named the national stone in 2011. Output reached 195,706 pounds in 2024.

Sources: Acento (mining exports 2025, Central Bank data); Diario Libre (ProDominicana export data); Listin Diario (exports January to September 2026); Barrick second quarter 2026 results; Mining Weekly (Pueblo Viejo extension); Newmont (Pueblo Viejo page); elDinero (Pueblo Viejo taxes); Ministry of Energy and Mines (rare earths, 14 September 2026); Revista Mercado (rare earths and the US); Ministry of Energy and Mines supplement, July 2025; La Estrella de Panama (copper); Diario Libre (Cerro de Maimon); US Geological Survey Minerals Yearbook 2016; Acento (fuel imports, Ministry of Energy and Mines data); Acento (Cibao basin contract); Acento (Azua basin study); Revista Mercado (rice); Diario Libre (Abinader on rice decree); Diario Libre (cacao exports); Ministry of Environment; Acento (Larimar designation of origin); World Bank indicators; open.er-api.com (exchange rate) (all accessed 20 October 2026).