Jordan offers to supply Lebanon with part of its electricity needs

Jordan, AmmanAmman - Jordan on Wednesday offered to supply Lebanon with between 50 and 70 megawatts of electricity daily for the coming 16 months, the Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Khaldoun Qteishat said.

Qteishat said he made the offer during a meeting of energy ministers of Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Egypt, who met in Amman Wednesday to discuss meeting Lebanon's requirements.

Lebanese Energy Minister Allain Tabourian told the meeting that his country suffered from a shortage of 800 megawatts per day and that he was appealing for the gap to be closed either by buying electricity from the other three countries participating in the meeting or through the seven-nation regional power grid.

In addition to Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, the regional grid involves Iraq, Libya and Turkey.

Tabourian said Lebanon's power load reached 2,200 megawatts this summer, but they country produced only 1,400 megawatts.

"We are discussing the possibility of supplying us with energy at prices that allow us to trim our energy bill which reached 25 per cent of the country's gross domestic product," he added. (dpa)

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