Jordan to invest USD 846m in hydropower capacity - report

Jordan is planning to spend JOD 600 million (USD 846.2m/EUR 772.8m) to build hydropower plants on dams across the kingdom, the minister of energy and mineral resources, Saleh Al-Kharabsheh, said on Tuesday.

The announcement was made during a meeting organised by the Association of Banks which was attended by the chief executives of local lenders and was dedicated to energy issues.

More details about the project were not disclosed.

Cited by newspaper Addustour, Al-Kharabsheh noted during the meeting that Jordan is one of the countries with the greatest potential for the deployment of solar energy based on the number of sunny days per year and pointed out efforts to make the kingdom a centre for renewable energy exports in the region. Additionally, the minister said that interconnections with Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Iraq represent an opportunity to bolster the country's economic growth.

The Hashemite kingdom aims to raise the share of electricity from renewables to more than 50% by 2030 as the country seeks to strengthen the utilisation of local energy sources, Al-Kharabsheh told news agency Petra in November. According to the secretary-general of the Arab Renewable Energy Commission (AREC), Muhammad Al-Taani, renewable energy meets more than 20% of the power needs in Jordan.

(JOD 1.0 = USD 1.410/EUR 1.288)

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