The government of Jordan has awarded the Russian Atomic Energy Corporation (ROSATOM) a contract to build the country?s first two nuclear power plants east of Amman, within the next decade
According to the Jordan Times, ROSATOM would own a 49 per cent stake in the 1,000MW power plants project, that has been estimated to cost about US$10bn. The remaining 51 per cent interest would be held by the Jordanian government.
Jordan Atomic Energy Commission chairman Khaled Toukan said, ?Our government and ROSATOM have entered into the second stage of negotiations over electricity pricing in order to reach a final agreement and break ground on the reactors by 2015.?
According to Jordanian energy officials, the nuclear reactors would be situated near Qusayr Amra, some 60km northeast of Amman and 30km away from residential sites.
Jordan reportedly imports around 97 per cent of its energy needs at a cost of over one-fifth of the gross domestic product.
Earlier this year, other Middle Eastern economies have announced similar plans in the area of nuclear energy. The UAE is set to build four reactors with a combined capacity of 5,600MW by 2020 and Egypt reaffirmed its plans to establish a 1,000MW reactor by the end of the decade. Saudi Arabia too has plans to set up 16 nuclear reactors by 2030.
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