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AMMAN — The impact of a warm air mass that brought dust and above-average temperatures to the Kingdom is expected to abate on Tuesday, according to the Jordan Meteorological Department (JMD).

The warm air mass, which started affecting the country on Saturday, will subside on Tuesday morning, when temperatures will drop and the weather will be partly cloudy, a JMD weather forecaster told The Jordan Times on Monday.

The air mass brought khamsini-like conditions, but the dusty and hot weather over the past three days was not a khamsini depression, the meteorologist said.

“The khamsini phenomenon starts affecting the country in late March. Its winds are southeasterly, blowing from Africa and passing over the Sinai desert before reaching the Kingdom,” he explained.

The warm air mass, on the other hand, was accompanied by winds from Africa and passed over the Mediterranean Sea, the weather forecaster noted.

Meanwhile, maximum temperatures are forecast to drop to 20°C on Tuesday, remaining five degrees above their annual average of 15°C during this time of the year, while the minimum will be 8°C, according to the JMD.

Winds will be northwesterly moderate to brisk, with a slight chance of showers in the morning.

A slight rise in mercury levels is expected on Wednesday, when the weather will be fair in mountainous areas and relatively warm in the rest of the country. 

Temperatures in the capital will range between a high of 22°C and a low of 10°C, with southwesterly moderate winds turning to northwesterly in the afternoon.

Another rise in temperatures is expected on Thursday, with mercury levels climbing nine degrees above their annual average. 

“The weather on Thursday will be pleasant, with daytime temperatures reaching 24°C in Amman and dropping to 11°C at night,” the weather forecaster said.

AMMAN — Starting 2018, Jordan’s energy sector will start to reap the fruits of multibillion-dollar projects that entail producing oil locally and generating electricity using clean techniques, Energy Minister Mohammad Hamed has said.

Jordan, which currently imports about 96 per cent of its energy needs costing annually about 20 per cent of the gross domestic product, will not only be able to fulfil its energy needs but will also be capable of exporting energy when a series of energy projects in different areas go operational in 2018, the minister said in a recent interview with The Jordan Times.

Oil shale

Production of oil from oil shale in Jordan is expected to start in 2018, initially in small quantities, but will rise gradually every year to reach significant quantities by early 2020.

In 2019, Saudi Arab Co. for Oil Shale will start producing 3,000 barrels of oil from oil shale per day under a $2-3 billion project, said the minister. Production will rise to 30,000 barrels per day in 2025, he said.

Meanwhile, the Royal Dutch Shell Plc. is expected to start producing shale oil in 2022.

The Dutch company is expected to produce 300,000 barrels of oil from oil shale per day, said the minister.

The Kingdom will also witness several projects that use oil shale for production of electricity starting 2017, said Hamed.

One of these projects is being implemented by an Estonian-Malaysian consortium, Enefit, which will construct a 460-megawatt (MW) oil shale power plant.

“The project is going as scheduled and we are in the process of negotiating the price of electricity to be sold from the project to the National Electric Power Company,” said the minister.

The government is expected to sign an agreement to build a $2 billion oil shale-fuelled power plant this year with a group of Chinese, UAE and Jordanian companies, said the minister.

The consortium is expected to provide the technical and financial offers for the 600MW plant in July, while the power purchase deal is expected to be signed with the consortium at the end of this year, Hamed announced. 

Renewable energy

Around mid-2017, several renewable energy power plants are expected to start supplying the national grid with electricity, said the minister.

The government is expected to sign agreements with 12 companies this month to build 12 solar power plants. The total capacity of the projects is 200MW, while the total cost of the projects is around $350 million, the official said.

In September of this year, the government will select four companies out of 23 short-listed ones to build a 50-megawatts solar power plant each, said Hamed.

In another tender, the ministry is in the process of receiving bids for renewable energy plants. Under this tender, the government will select four companies at the end of this year and each will build a 100MW renewable energy power plant. 

“All renewable energy projects are to be linked to the grid by 2018. These projects will significantly increase Jordan’s electricity production capacity, which stands now at 3,200 megawatts,” said the minister.

According to official figures, Jordan consumed in 2013 around 16.7 gigawatts of electricity, rising by around 7 per cent from the previous year. 

Energy infrastructure projects

The minister announced that Shell has won a tender to provide liquefied natural gas to Aqaba’s liquefied natural gas terminal.

The energy giant will provide 590 million cubic feet of liquefied natural gas per day to a floating storage re-gasification unit which the government recently rented and then gas will flow to the terminal, he said, expecting liquefied natural gas to start flowing to the terminal at the end of 2014.

Hamed said work on building a terminal for liquefied petroleum gas in Aqaba is going as scheduled and that the facility is expected to be operational in November this year.

In addition, the ministry is awaiting financial and technical offers by companies to build a strategic reserve for petroleum products in Amman and is expected to receive the offers by March 17, said the minister.

The $210 million reserve, which has a total capacity of 300,000 to 350,000 metric tonnes, is expected to be operational in 2016, said the minister.

Egyptian gas/oil from Iraq

The minister said natural gas supply from Egypt is completely halted as the pipeline exporting Egypt’s gas to Jordan has been sabotaged several times and the repair process is not easy in light of the security conditions in Sinai.

“Jordan has not received natural gas from Egypt since July 2013 and this has significantly burdened our energy sector and increased energy costs,” said the minister.

After the cut in gas supply, Jordan switched to heavy fuel for power generation, which costs the Kingdom about JD5 million per day, said the minister.

“The cost of diesel, for example, is six times that of natural gas… We hope that the Egyptian authorities will fix the pipeline soon. In fact, we have already asked them to speed up the process because our situation is critical,” Hamed said.

On reports that oil shipments via trucks from Iraq were halted, the minister said the Kingdom did not receive an official letter from Iraq that oil shipments were stopped.

“We receive about 10,000 barrels of oil per day from Iraq. There are disruptions sometimes due to the security conditions in Iraqi territories bordering the Kingdom. Because of the disruptions, we sometimes receive 20 per cent to 30 per cent less than what we are supposed to receive,” said the minister.

Regional energy projects

The minister noted that there are discussions at present between Iraq and Jordan to build a refinery in the port city of Aqaba.

“We have formed a technical committee comprising officials from the two sides to look into the project and procedures needed to go ahead with the implementation of the scheme,” said Hamed.

On the oil pipeline worth $18 billion to export crude oil from Basra to Aqaba, the minister said the two sides are going ahead with the scheme.

He added that there are discussions between Iraq, Jordan and Egypt to extend the pipeline, which will pump one million barrels of oil per day from Basra to Aqaba Port, and then to Egypt.

“With all these projects that are already under implementation or in the pipelines, Jordan’s energy sector will become promising in the near future,” said the minister.

AMMAN — MPs plan to unfreeze their colleague Qusai Dmeisi’s membership in the Lower House and end his one-year suspension ahead of time, a parliamentary source said on Sunday.

Since Dmeisi’s suspension last September over a shooting incident that took place under the Dome and led to the dismissal of culprit Talal Sharif, the 150-strong House has never held sessions with full attendance.

By-elections were held in November to fill Sharif’s vacant seat, but Dmeisi remains suspended.

Last year, Sharif fired at least two bullets from his AK-47 at Dmeisi (Zarqa, 4th District) during an argument as the Lower House was about to start a session.

The bullets did not hit Dmeisi, but the House decided to dismiss Sharif, which effectively lifted his immunity, to allow judicial authorities to investigate the case.

He has been charged with attempted murder, possession of unlicensed firearms and resisting security forces.

Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh and his deputy, Ahmad Safadi, “made consultations” and received no objection to end the suspension from the parties involved, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. 

Meanwhile, the Lower House continued its discussions of the draft agriculture law during its Sunday session.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday underlined Jordan’s commitment to further improving cooperation with Morocco in all areas. 

At a meeting with Moroccan Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane, King Abdullah called for activating the work of the Joint Jordanian-Moroccan Higher Committee, according to a Royal Court statement. 

Talks also covered the efforts to bring about peace in the Middle East that should lead to the establishment of a viable and independent Palestinian state on Palestinian national soil with East Jerusalem as its capital, in line with the two-state solution and the international terms of reference, especially the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative. 

Regarding the situation in Syria, King Abdullah reiterated Jordan’s stance in supporting a comprehensive political resolution to the crisis that would end the bloodshed and preserve the unity and cohesion of the country.  

The King highlighted the burden Jordan is enduring due to hosting a large number of Syrian refugees, according to the Royal Court. 

Also on Sunday, Senate President Abdur-Ra’uf S. Rawabdeh met with Benkirane, stressing that Jordan and Morocco enjoy “an advanced level of relations”, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He lauded the peaceful approach both kingdoms adopted in dealing with the opposition, as both are widely seen as survivors of the Arab Spring.

Rawabdeh praised the experience of the Justice and Development Party in Morocco, describing it as a new phenomenon in Islamist partisan work that can serve as a model to follow. 

Benkirane also praised the “special relations” between the two countries, underlining the similar conditions they have both experienced and reaffirming his country’s keenness on strengthening bilateral cooperation at all levels.

AMMAN — Twenty-five colleges and universities from United States will take part in the next edition of the American Education Expo Scholarship Fair, taking place on Tuesday, March 4, at the Kempinski Hotel on Abdul Hamid Shoman Street from 6pm to 9pm.

Jordanian students and their families will be able to discuss undergraduate and graduate admissions and scholarship opportunities at the event, according to a statement released by the organisers.

The value of scholarships available varies from between $5,000 and $20,000 to full tuition.

“Entrance to the fair is free and students who are interested in furthering their studies in the United States should bring multiple copies of their report cards, transcripts and TOEFL scores to enable representatives to determine admission and scholarship eligibility,” the statement said.

Students who wish to register for the event can do so online at  http://studentlane.com/en_us/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=123

AMMAN — In its January report on violations against media personnel in the region, Defenders of Media Freedom in the Arab World, Sanad, said there were 85 violations and attacks against 128 media personnel and 10 media institutions, according to a statement released by the Centre for Defending the Freedom of Journalists.

Sanad documented around 222 forms of aggression against press freedom, including six assassination attempts and six kidnap cases.

Three media personnel were killed in Egypt, Iraq and Libya in January, while 11 media activists were killed in Syria in the same month, according to the report.

AMMAN — The 2014 IKB Entrepreneurship Award for Schools was launched on Saturday in a bid to entrench knowledge and financial and administrative skills among the younger generation.

In a press conference, attended by businesspeople and media figures, award organisers said students aged between 14 and 17 can compete to win three prizes worth $8,000, while university graduates can apply to become advisers of the award, according to a statement.

AMMAN — The National Council for Family Affairs (NCFA) will soon publish the first national study on the situation of Jordanian families, its secretary general Fadel Hmoud said Sunday.

During a meeting with members of the Forum of Jordanian Parliamentarian Women, Hmoud acquainted them with the NCFA’s duties, achievements and role in drawing up development policies, and protecting families from violence.

AMMAN — Social Security Investment Fund (SSIF) Chairman Suleiman Hafez on Sunday called on media outlets to be “responsible” in their coverage of the case regarding the fund’s stake in the Housing Bank.

Voicing appreciation of the media’s interest in the case, Hafez described some news reports as “unrealistic” and “inaccurate” at times, citing the case’s sensitivity, as it is related to the assets of Social Security Corporation subscribers.

Hafez said the company that filed a lawsuit against the SSIF may leak rumours to elicit reactions that it might use in court proceedings.

The company that filed the lawsuit is not a Kuwaiti firm as has been published, he stressed, denying reports that the SSIF changed its defence team.

AMMAN — The State Security Court on Sunday began looking into a case concerning the smuggling of Syrians into the Kingdom, in which 19 Syrians and three Jordanians are implicated.

The defendants are charged with illegally bringing Syrians into the Kingdom in violation of Article 153 of the Penal Code, in cooperation with their dealer “Abu Jumaa”, a Syrian national residing in Syria.

The defendants pleaded not guilty and the session was adjourned until next week.