By Abdelmoneim Haikal

ISTANBUL

Jordan is running out of options to best deal with its energy crisis as geopolitical crises continue to engulf its tense neighborhood. Analysts say that in the end, the country will have no better choice but to strike a deal with Israel to supply gas despite dissenting notes.

According to a former Jordanian energy minister, Jordan should pursue its national interest in deciding whether it should import Israeli natural gas.

In an interview with The Anadolu Agency during the recently held Bosphorus Energy Club meeting in Istanbul Thursday, Malek Kabariti said he expected the Israeli gas agreement with Noble Energy, a U.S.-based oil-and-gas company, to go through.

Noble Energy is due to supply 45 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Israel’s Leviathan gas field to Jordan’s National Electric Power Company for 15 years starting from 2017.

The provisional deal has caused controversy in Jordan, with several non-governmental organizations launching protests against it.

 “At the end of the day, we have to look for Jordan’s interest. The Egyptians are already at negotiation with Noble to import gas from the East Mediterranean region,” Kabariti said.

He regarded the deal as a chance to facilitate peace in the region.

 “It is not only Israeli gas. It is the Israeli-Palestinian, Turkish-Lebanese, Egyptian-Cypriot gas. It is a combination of all these countries. This, I think, is a good mechanism for making all countries and decision makers in the region talk seriously about peace,” the former minister said.

Jordan’s plans to diversify energy supplies have been hit by geopolitical developments in neighboring countries. The country used to import around 80 percent of its natural gas for power generation from Egypt and also had plans to import gas from Iraq.

“Now after the political situation in Iraq and Syria, things are not clear; also the political situation in Egypt is not clear as well as the situation in Palestine between the Palestinians and the Israelis,” Kabariti said.

In such a tense scenario, Jordan is looking for more reliable supplies of Liquefied Natural Gas even if it is more expensive.

“By the mid of next year, we will have an LNG jetty at the port of Aqaba, where we will be able to import LNG from any international resource,” the ex-minister said.

Aqaba is a city in Jordan by the Red Sea.

He added that negotiations are ongoing to purchase Liquefied Natural Gas from different resources. “We are looking at international suppliers. We would like to get gas from Qatar if it is possible. But we have to look at prices and availability of these resources,” he added.

The former minister also pointed out that electricity remained a severe problem for Jordan.

“Electricity is our worst problem. Subsidy has driven Jordan into a very critical financial situation. Last year, the national electric company was in the red by about $4.5 billion. At the end of this year, it will get up to about $6.4 billion and that is all due to subsidies. We have to end subsidies,” he said.

Kabariti said Jordan was successful in lifting subsidies in the oil sector and should take similar measures in the electricity sector.

“The best solution, in my opinion, is direct cash subsidy to people who deserve it. We have been very successful in the oil sector, where low-income families have been directly compensated for the difference in prices. Due to the decline of oil prices internationally now, Jordan does not have to pay any subsidy for the needy because prices are practically within the reach of the average Jordanian,” he explained.

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