SD. President Leonel Fernandez chaired yesterday the meeting of the Presidential Cabinet for Investment and Strategy, where it was announced that five investment projects were coming to the country totaling US$765 million, including a collection center for natural gas in the town of Haina, San Cristobal with a cost of over US$300 million.

The cabinet also approved the start of two solar energy projects for 80 megawatts; a tourism project and a business project. The latter consists of the sale of breakfast, lunch and dinner at low prices and will involve some 20,000 women that will become businesswomen.

At the end of the meeting, held in the Trinitarios Room of the Presidential Palace, Eddy Martinez, the director of the Center for Exports and Investments of the Dominican Republic (CEI-RD), reported that the tourism initiative has to do with the rescue of this sector in the province of Puerto Plata, but that it would be next week before he revealed more details with regard to it. Nevertheless, he said that this hear they would start off a project that he feels will be a transformer for the "Bride of the Atlantic."

Martinez indicated that all of the projects, for which they created commissions to provide monitoring, are financed with foreign capital, and will be started this year, and that the one related to food is expected to start a pilot program within three months.

Also present at the meeting were the ministers of Industry and Commerce, Manuel Garcia Arevalo, and the Environment, Jaime David Fernandez Mirabal, as well as others, including United States businessmen and investors from Peru and Spain.