Engineer Muhammad Al-Najjar, Minister of Water, said the Ministry is trying to find the necessary funding to implement the National Carrier Project through Jordanian investors and local banks. He also indicated that out of the 2.5 billion dollar cost, a 500 million dollar grants have been provided.

Al-Najjar stressed in the ABJ symposium held on Tuesday that the government will guarantee constant funding of the water sector due to its great importance.

He said that the current water projects in Jordan account for about 16% of the total generated energy expecting a 26% rise of the used energy volume with the start of the National Carrier Project.

The Minister stressed the importance of Jordanian institutions and banks financing Jordanian projects without resorting to external borrowing affirming the need of providing water sources away from draining water basins.

Al-Najjar pointed out that the deep wells experience is not satisfactory due to high temperature, high salinity rate and high radiation which makes investing in them rather risky.

He also stated that the Ministry of Investment plays a key role in funding and the quick implementation of projects.

Basem Al-Salem, the ABJ Chairman of the Board of Directors, said that the Jordanian banking sector plays a fundamental role in financing various economic activities as well as infrastructure projects.

He pointed out that finance is collected through direct or syndicated loans or contribution to the infrastructure projects ownership through funds investing in infrastructure projects such as the Saudi Jordanian Investment Fund Company and Al-Fursan Group, In accordance the public and private sectors partnership contracts.

He stressed that banks played a pivotal role in the past years in funding renewable energy projects through the Central Bank loans with subsidized interest rates which led to tangible growth in the energy sector lately.

Al-Salem added that the projects’ success is attributable to the integration of the government guarantees in the form of power purchase agreements (PPA), a qualified private sector capable of implementing projects, cheap funding sources supported by the Central Bank and an efficient banking sector with great experience in the field of project evaluation, economic feasibility study and design financing structures commensurate with the projects’ nature and cash flows.

Al-Salem pointed to the strategic importance of the issue of water in Jordan noting that it is of a high national priority.

He said that water situation in Jordan is highly sensitive as immediate actions should be undertaken calling for thinking of an innovative mechanism to take the necessary transparent and credible decisions.

Al-Salem stressed the importance of walking on 3 parallel tracks, namely, waste treatment, water desalination and deep-water exploitation as going one path without the other will contribute to feeding negative impressions that have become a major obstacle to development.