Jordan has inaugurated commercial operation of a 3-MW solar power project developed by Ennera in Azraq. Power generated by the facility is to be purchased by the state-controlled National Electric Power Company (NEPCO).
The project is composed of 10,186 panels of 295W capacity each. It has an expected life cycle of 25 years and a guarantee of three years, according to a report. The project is estimated to deliver 5,447 MWh a year.
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (MEMR) of the kingdom had granted the EPC contract for the project to Ennera. And it was financed using the FIEM funds managed by the Secretary of State for Trade.
Jordan has been developing renewable energy projects as part of its Energy Expansion Plan for 2020.
Last year the Hashemite kingdom approved a 117-MW wind power project in Tafila province that was estimated to cost $285 million.
The plant with its 38, 3-megawatt turbines is to generate 400 GWh of electricity a year and it should begin commercial production this year.
The wind farm is expected to increase Jordan’s total power capacity by 3 percent.
Moreover, the farm offers Jordan the benefit of cheaper electricity as its output would cost 25 percent less than power produced by thermal units. In terms of emissions, installation of the project would cut carbon emissions by 40,000 tons a year.
Jordan has been targeting 10 percent increase in its total energy capacity. Also, it wants renewable energy to constitute 10 percent of Jordan’s consumed capacity by 2020.
Currently, Jordan imports about 90 percent of the energy it needs and spends 40 percent of its energy on power.
By 2020 the kingdom expects to expand renewable energy capacity to 1,500 MW, that is, 40 percent of the power available now.
Ajith Kumar S