AMMAN - An agreement with British Petroleum (BP) to invest in the Risheh Field is expected in the next couple of months, the head of the Natural Resources Authority (NRA) told The Jordan Times on Sunday.
"We are reviewing the legal portion of the agreement, before signing it and sending it to the government for endorsement," NRA Director General Maher Hijazeen said.
He indicated that two tenders for oil exploration will be floated today to attract proposals for investments in the northern heights and Jafr areas.
The tender is part of an overall plan led by NRA to explore oil across the Kingdom.
"Risheh field has been producing in commercial quantities at a daily rate of 18 million cubic feet (mcf) of petroleum gas since it was discovered in 1989," Hijazeen said, noting that recently the quantity has increased to 20 mcf.
According to the director general, the Risheh field has provided fuel for the Risheh Power Plant during the past years.
"The Kingdom imports 96 per cent of its energy needs as 4 per cent is produced from Risheh field," Hijazeen said.
The National Petroleum Company (NPC) has recently discovered a new well with a production capacity of 10mcf per day. The company said this is the first well to produe gas in commercial quantities.
BP has submitted its bid to the concerned Jordanian authorities to enlarge the Rishah field in a partnership with the NPC under a long-term concession agreement.
Jordan has concluded negotiations over an agreement to produce oil from oil shale at lower underground levels with Shell.
In December, the NRA forwarded to the Cabinet the commercial deal it initially signed with the Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company to tap the Kingdom's vast amounts of oil shale.
According to the feasibility study, the project is expected to generate $200 million annually, in addition to revenues from royalties and taxes on produced oil which will be calculated on the basis of market oil prices.
According to official figures, some 40 billion tonnes of oil shale exist in 21 locations near the Yarmouk River, Buweida, Beit Ras, Rweished, Karak, Madaba and Maan districts.
By Khalid Neimat
© Jordan Times 2009
