AMMAN, Jordan

Jordan and Iraq announced Saturday that the two countries' electrical interconnection had entered into force.

“The electric line will be shared between the Risha power station and Iraq’s Rutba station at a voltage of 132 kilovolts, to feed the loads of the Al-Rutba area near the border with Jordan,” Amjad Rawashdeh, head of the Jordanian National Electric Power Company, told the state news agency Petra.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi News Agency reported that Electricity Minister Ziad Ali Fadel on Saturday opened the electrical connection line between Iraq and Jordan.

Last year, Amman and Baghdad signed an agreement to supply Iraq with 40 megawatts of electricity.

In Oct. 2022, Iraq and Jordan laid the foundation stone for an electrical interconnection project between the two neighboring countries.

Iraq generates between 19,000 and 21,000 megawatts, but the country’s actual need exceeds 30,000 megawatts, according to Iraqi officials.

For years, Baghdad has imported 1,200 megawatts of electricity from neighboring Iran to feed its local electric power plants.

In 2022, Iraq signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia for electricity interconnection between the two neighbors.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi​​​​​​​