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Jordan intends to establish a pumped hydro storage project before 2030, a top official at the country’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said.
Amani Al-Azzam, Secretary-General at the Ministry said the country is working on a roadmap to strengthen the electricity transmission and distribution networks by incorporating storage solutions and intends to establish a pumped hydro project before 2030 to incorporate more renewables in the grid.
In June 2020, prequalification bids were invited for preparing a feasibility study for a pumped storage project at the Al-Mujib dam in Jordan.
Speaking at the Seventh International Forum for Investment in Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, he said the electricity interconnection projects with neighbouring countries - Egypt, Palestine, Iraq and Saudi Arabia - are expected to be completed by end of 2025.
The official said renewable energy supplied more than 26 percent of the total energy consumed in 2021 and will account for more than 30 percent of Jordan’s energy consumption by 2030.
“We are currently working on updating the necessary plans to increase this percentage”, he said.
He said about 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy was produced directly by consumers after regulatory changes were made allowing for net metering and transit projects.
He said the Ministry is currently preparing the Third National Energy Efficiency Plan (2023-2025) to achieve its goals of achieving energy efficiency and rationalising energy use by 9 percent by 2030.
The Ministry is also preparing an electric vehicle transport strategy, which aims to increase the share of EVs from the current 2 percent (37,000 vehicles) to 30 percent by 2030.
He added that Jordan has begun preparing a roadmap for policy and regulatory framework for green hydrogen production and its derivatives.
In 2021, Jordan signed its first framework agreement with Australia-based Fortescue Future Industries to prepare a feasibility study for the production of green hydrogen.
(Reporting by Sowmya Sundar; Editing by Anoop Menon)
