More power through cooperation

It is very good news that Jordan will sign a memorandum of understanding with the GCC Interconnection Authority to join the Gulf countries’ power grid via Saudi Arabia and thus secure the country’s energy needs on a more stable basis.

Such linkup is of strategic importance, and besides the immediate benefit to Jordan, it is also going to strengthen the strategic cooperation between the two sides.

The director general of the National Electric Power Company said, on the sidelines of the Jordan International Energy Summit held recently in Amman, that “as demand [for electricity] rises, sometimes we need more electric power supply and in Saudi Arabia they have a surplus, so will benefit from that a lot”.

The deal is part of the growing strategic cooperation between Jordan and the GCC, stressed the minister of energy and mineral resources.

The project to connect Jordan to the GCC power grid will take two years to complete, at a cost that could reach JD200 million, but in view of the need for electric power and the choices available, it is an endeavour worth pursuing.

In Jordan, which imports oil for its needs and otherwise has limited room to manoeuvre when it comes to electricity production, the price for this indispensable commodity is quite high, while the country’s development rests on the availability of affordable electricity rates.

The envisaged project is bound to attain that goal and thus help the country’s progress.

Beyond that, building more bridges with the GCC should put the country’s economy and security on firmer grounds.

The future of the Arab world rests on closer relations and cooperation among Arab countries.

The fragmentation of the Arab nation has led to the chaos we now witness in the area, with no winner but with the entire Arab world painfully losing.

Cooperation and economic integration can only ensure that the Arab world assumes a stronger role in regional and international affairs.

Building more bridges with GCC is one sure way to reach this objective.