Punta Cana Free Trade Zone: A New Logistics and Technology Hub for the Caribbean
An innovative free trade zone joins the tourism industry with an investment exceeding US$200 million.
November 12, 2025 – The Punta Cana Free Trade Zone (PCFTZ) was officially launched, a free zone investment of over US$200 million, which combines air and maritime logistics operations, an innovation and technology development center, and an aircraft maintenance and repair service. The event was attended by President Luis Abinader and leading representatives of the public and private sectors. This new initiative for the development of the Eastern Region is an innovative business project for Latin America and the Caribbean promoted by Grupo Punta Cana (GPC), the company that has driven the sustainable development and transformation of tourism in the region for decades.
Innovative Project with a Long-Term Vision: Tourism Meets Industry
The Punta Cana Free Trade Zone is the result of a long-term investment and a project designed to coexist with the extraordinary tourism growth of the region through industrial, technological, and logistics operations. Punta Cana Hub has a total area of 742,616 square meters and will bring together air, sea, and land logistics operations, corporate areas, and an innovation center for entrepreneurship and fintech and technology companies development. The project’s purpose is to create a diversified investment economy, to attract different types of investments to the region and the country, and to lay the groundwork for the future development of industry and technology in the Dominican Republic.
The Punta Cana Free Trade Zone project also includes the first aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) complex of the Dominican Republic, which will place the country on the map as a future regional hub for aviation services in the Caribbean. It will provide airlines in Latin America and the Caribbean with leading-edge aircraft servicing, engineering, and logistics services, creating a new high-value segment in the national economy.
Jobs and Training for Residents
This complex, in its phase of full operation, will generate over 10,000 direct and indirect jobs, from air cargo and logistics specialists, software engineers, maintenance technicians, administrative staff, and more. It will also create important employment opportunities for people living in La Altagracia province and nearby regions by providing technical specialization and training to promote employment and workforce development in skilled jobs, beyond the capital area, where most of these opportunities have traditionally been limited in the country.
In addition, the Punta Cana Free Trade Zone strengthens the Dominican Republic’s role as an international logistics hub, a center for innovation, and an attractive option for foreign investment. With its state-of-the-art facilities and modern logistics solutions, the PCFTZ will be a key element in the country’s competitiveness strategy in the Caribbean and Latin American markets.
Hub of Air, Sea, and Land Logistics for the Caribbean
The 265,518 m² of land area and 75,000 m² of construction, the Air, Sea, and Land Logistics Center, is designed to manage imports, exports, transshipments and parcels. This operation is strategically located near Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ) and the ports of La Romana and Haina for multimodal connectivity, which will strengthen the Dominican Republic’s logistics infrastructure and contribute to reducing delivery times and costs of products entering and leaving the country.
The PCFTZ complex, which will be equipped with the latest generation of dual-view X-ray machines, container verification systems and automated inventory control systems, will provide maximum safety and efficiency. In its last stage, with a capacity of 430 tons of air cargo and five wide-body aircraft ramp positions, it will move up to 108 tons of cargo per aircraft depending on the configuration. This will offer international companies efficient access to markets in North America, Central America and South America.
Agreement with DP World
Grupo Punta Cana signed a collaboration agreement with DP World, a multinational specialized in logistics solutions and port operations, to work jointly on the construction of the Multimodal Logistics Center that will combine air, land, and sea freight services in a single integrated platform. The agreement with DP World will ensure the implementation of global standards in logistics management, customs efficiency and cargo security from the start of the project. This will place the Dominican Republic on the map as a reference point for global maritime trade and strengthen the role of the region as a gateway between the Americas and Europe.
The announcement of a US$70 million investment in the project was also made by FL Technics, a European aviation services company, to build the first independent MRO (Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul) complex in the Dominican Republic in 2025. The ultra-modern maintenance facility will be equipped with the latest maintenance equipment and operated by local staff who will be trained by international experts, certified in accordance with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other international aviation organizations. In addition to providing MRO, the facility will also offer training programs to develop qualified Dominican professionals for highly technical and specialized careers in the aviation sector.
Environmentally Responsible Innovation Center
Grupo Punta Cana has a long-standing history of innovation and a focus on developing environmentally responsible initiatives in tourism and infrastructure. Punta Cana Free Trade Zone will be no exception. Renewable energy systems, waste management solutions and eco-friendly building practices will all be used throughout the project. The free zone’s innovation center, meanwhile, will help incubate and support startups and established businesses that are working in the fields of clean technologies, software, and digital transformation.
The Punta Cana Free Trade Zone represents a new model for the Dominican Republic, evolving into a diversified and knowledge-based economy. Logistics, aviation and other services, which have not traditionally been strong in the Dominican Republic, are beginning to play an important role in the country’s business landscape. Once the Punta Cana Free Trade Zone is in operation, it will not only serve existing export-oriented industries but also attract new businesses to expand their operations in the Caribbean region.
Its strategic location, high-quality infrastructure and a regulatory and institutional framework that is favorable to investment make the Punta Cana Free Trade Zone a pioneer project and an example to be emulated for the international competitiveness of the Dominican Republic.