The Plaza del Mercado de Río Piedras in San Juan is historically the largest produce market on Puerto Rico, and responsible for the livelihoods of over 200 small business owners and their families. However, since Hurricane Maria, the unstable energy supply has yielded an unstable business environment, produce losses, and a decline in customers.

This is why Hispanic Federation supports, with the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, the Solar Saves Lives initiative led by The Solar Foundation and the Clinton Foundation to provide renewable energy sources to Mercado de Río Piedras in San Juan.

The first phase includes the installation of 700 units of LED lighting in the Mercado, and in the forthcoming months future phases will include the installation of 250kW of solar panels, a 475kWh battery to help the market operate in the event of interruptions to the grid, and additional energy efficiency upgrades.

“This project combines so many efforts to support the Río Piedras community – driving economic development, lowering energy consumption, empowering small businesses, and promoting sustainability and resiliency,” said José Calderón, President of the Hispanic Federation. “These types of installations are a perfect example of the types of investments we need to make in Puerto Rico’s future, and the Hispanic Federation is excited to be supporting this incredibly important effort to install solar equipment and energy efficiency upgrades at the Río Piedras Market.”

Latest update from mercado de río piedras

visit other project HIGHLIGHTS