President Leonel Fernandez marked the commencement of the construction of a new Hydroelectric dam in San Jose de las Matas yesterday by setting off artificial explosives as part of the inauguration of the project. Construction of the project is budgeted at U$285 million and will be undertaken by a Brazilian engineering company. Once complete the dam is forecasted to save 40million dollars per year and will help lower the Dominican Republic’s dependence on foreign oil.