AMMAN — Jordan on Sunday signed two grant agreements with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to expand and rehabilitate the Ain Ghazal pre-treatment plant, a key component of the Kingdom’s water infrastructure.

The agreements were signed by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zeina Toukan on behalf of the government, Minister of Water and Irrigation Raed Abul Saud on behalf of the Water Authority, and Gretchen Biery, EBRD’s head of office in Amman and regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, according a Planning Ministry statement.

Toukan said the first grant, an investment grant, is valued at $3 million, while the second, a technical assistance grant, amounts to 708,700 euro, bringing total technical support to approximately 1.26 million euro. The grants build on a soft loan worth $11.25 million that Jordan signed with the bank in January 2023.

Abul Saud noted that the financing will enable the Ain Ghazal plant to boost its treatment capacity to 726,712 cubic metres per day, sufficient to handle expected wastewater inflows through 2045. He stressed that the project is critical to supporting the National Water Carrier Project, which will desalinate and transport water from Aqaba to Amman.

Toukan thanked the bank for its ongoing support, highlighting the project’s alignment with Jordan’s Economic Modernisation Vision.

“We are proud to continue our partnership with the Government of Jordan through this vital project,” Biery said. “The expansion of the Ain Ghazal pre-treatment plant will improve wastewater services for more than three million people and secure capacity for decades to come.”

© Copyright The Jordan Times. All rights reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).