Jordan considers Iranian offer after Egypt gas disruptions

[News_Editor]

Jordan considers Iranian offer after Egypt gas disruptions

2011-07-12 08:34:16 GMT+7 (ICT)

AMMAN (BNO NEWS) -- Jordan said on Monday that it cannot longer rely on Egyptian gas after repeated pipeline attacks, Ammon News reported.

The Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Khaled Toukan said Jordan is considering an Iranian offer to supply natural gas to the Kingdom as a means of overcoming its current energy crisis. He said Iran submitted a letter to Jordan expressing its willingness to supply natural gas, but no prices have yet been floated.

Toukan added that Jordan is also considering a number of new options for natural gas, including supplies from Russia and Qatar. The minister earlier said that Jordan will not rely on Egyptian gas as its primary source for generating electrical power because of frequent interruptions in the supply, which has amounted to 82 days since the start of 2011.

The Iranian ambassador in Amman, Mustafa Zadeh, said that Jordan has not yet replied to his country's offer which was submitted more than a month ago. He added that details of quantity and pricing would be negotiated once the Jordanian government responds.

Egypt and Jordan earlier agreed to raise the 2012 supply to 220 million cubic feet. On Friday, Toukan told Jordanian television that an initial agreement to review gas prices had been signed between Egypt and Jordan.

Pipelines carrying natural gas to Israel and Jordan have been blown up three times since February, forcing a shutdown in gas flow. The latest incident was on 4 July and repairs to the pipeline are expected to be complete by the end of this week.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-07-12