Xinhua, Amman :
Jordan’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Mohammad Hamed said Wednesday Jordan did not sign a deal with Israel to import natural gas.
In a statement yesterday, the minister said several media reports indicated that Jordan signed the agreement, which in inaccurate.
“When the deal is signed, it will be announced,” said the minister.
He added that importing natural gas is one of the strategic options for Jordan to meet rising demand on electricity.
There were several protests in Jordan over the last few weeks calling on the government not to sign the deal with Israel.
In September, Hamed said Jordan’s National Electric Power Company will sign an agreement in November with Noble Energy to buy gas from Israeli fields.
The signing of the deal was delayed, according to the minister.
The Jordanian company signed a letter of intent with the American company to buy Israeli gas, according to Hamed.
Under the agreement, the U.S. company is to provide the Jordanian power company with 300 million cubic feet of gas per day for a period of 15 years, with a total volume of 15 billion U.S. dollars.
Gas supply will commence before the end of 2017, Hamed said, adding that the supply will help reduce the losses of the power company, expected to reach 1.9 billion U.S. dollars by the end of 2014.
Jordan imports annually approximately 97 percent of its energy needs.
Jordan’s Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Mohammad Hamed said Wednesday Jordan did not sign a deal with Israel to import natural gas.
In a statement yesterday, the minister said several media reports indicated that Jordan signed the agreement, which in inaccurate.
“When the deal is signed, it will be announced,” said the minister.
He added that importing natural gas is one of the strategic options for Jordan to meet rising demand on electricity.
There were several protests in Jordan over the last few weeks calling on the government not to sign the deal with Israel.
In September, Hamed said Jordan’s National Electric Power Company will sign an agreement in November with Noble Energy to buy gas from Israeli fields.
The signing of the deal was delayed, according to the minister.
The Jordanian company signed a letter of intent with the American company to buy Israeli gas, according to Hamed.
Under the agreement, the U.S. company is to provide the Jordanian power company with 300 million cubic feet of gas per day for a period of 15 years, with a total volume of 15 billion U.S. dollars.
Gas supply will commence before the end of 2017, Hamed said, adding that the supply will help reduce the losses of the power company, expected to reach 1.9 billion U.S. dollars by the end of 2014.
Jordan imports annually approximately 97 percent of its energy needs.
