Khaberni - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has announced that it is currently considering offering financing to support the development of the Aqaba-Amman water desalination and transfer project (the national carrier).
The bank explained that the study is currently undergoing an environmental and social impact assessment of the project, while at the same time working on designing a mechanism for the project’s development and implementation, as well as a financing provision mechanism, according to Al-Ghad.
The bank disclosed that once the environmental and social impact assessment is completed, the value of the proposed support financing and consultations about it will be disclosed, in line with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s policy on access to information and environmental and social policy.
The main goal of the project, set to commence next year with an estimated total cost of approximately 2 billion dinars, is to provide 300 million cubic meters of drinking water to the capital Amman and several other provinces, in addition to areas along the pipeline route.
The water will be drawn from a seawater desalination station using reverse osmosis south of Aqaba and will be transferred to Amman through a new water carrier, approximately 420 kilometers long, mostly paralleling the existing Disi carrier.
Estimates indicate that the project's water production will meet the annual drinking water needs of about 4 million individuals and is considered one of the sustainable initiatives aiming to reduce pressure on Jordan’s groundwater and surface water resources.
With the proposed financing, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will join the European Commission and the European Investment Bank in supporting the project, which began resource mobilization in 2022, within the framework of the European Union's partnership with its southern neighbors, including Jordan.
The European Investment Bank had also announced last July that it provided additional financing of 30 million euros, bringing the total financing provided by the bank for the project to 427 million euros in the form of investment loans, including 97 million euros in investment grants from the European Commission.
It is worth noting that at the beginning of this year, the government signed a contract to establish the Aqaba-Amman water desalination and transfer project (the national carrier) with a consortium of investors led by "Meridiam" and "Suez".
