AMMAN (JT) - A senior energy official said on Monday authorities are considering a pricing system for electricity that adopts a periodic update to tariffs based on changes in oil prices on the world market.
During the interview with the Jordan News Agency, Petra, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Khaldoun Qteishat said the measure seeks to reduce the National Electric Power Company's (NEPCO) budget deficit, which resulted from the increase in oil prices.
He said the Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC) is currently studying several alternatives to resolve the company's financial difficulties.
According to NEPCO Director General Ahmad Hiasat, the JD50 million budget deficit forced the company to postpone several projects until the funds needed for these projects are made available.
The government currently applies a periodic update system to the pricing of oil derivatives, in light of changes in international oil prices.
Qteishat also recommended the establishment of a fund for collecting any "surplus money" from electricity revenues.
Meanwhile, the minister announced that the government is expected to sign an agreement at the end of August with British Petroleum Company to develop Al Risheh gas field.
In the interview, Qteishat said the implementation of a project to distribute gas through pipes to Amman, Zarqa and Aqaba is dependent upon the availability of a gas source, adding that the government is currently in talks with Egypt to supply the gas needed for the project.
Egypt currently supplies Jordan with gas to operate power plants and part of the industrial needs at preferential prices under a 15-year agreement.
The minister also noted that an agreement with the Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company is expected to take effect August 16, adding that Jordan Oil Shale Company B.V., a subsidiary of Shell, has appointed 150 workers, mostly Jordanians, to begin implementing the project this year.
Signed in May 2009 on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum held at the Dead Sea, the agreement seeks to tap into the Kingdom's oil shale resources, which lie deep underground and require advanced technology to extract.
© Jordan Times 2009
