Solar Energy for Desalinated Water: Israel, Jordan, UAE Ink New Agreement

November 10, 2022

by: Kate Norman

Thursday, 10 November 2022 | Israel signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) yesterday with Jordan and the United Arab Emirates [UAE] to progress a year-old agreement to provide Israel with clean energy and Jordan with water.

The three nations signed the agreement yesterday at the COP27 climate conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. A previous MOU declaring intent was signed last year at COP26 in Scotland, and the current agreement states that the countries will continue “engaging to develop the necessary implements in plans in time for COP28,” the Times of Israel reported.

The agreement will see Israel construct a desalination plant on the Mediterranean coast from which parched Jordan can purchase more water. Jordan, in return, will build a solar field in its desert to provide Israel with clean energy. A firm from the UAE will build the solar field in the Hashemite kingdom, the Times of Israel reported.

The solar plant in Jordan will have a 600 MW storage capacity, and the desalination plant in Israel is set to provide Jordan with 200 million cubic meters of water each year.

The MOU declared that the water and energy projects have been undergoing feasibility studies, according to the Times of Israel, and that they show “positive potential prospects.”

The deal was brokered by the UAE and the US and is a byproduct of the 2020 Abraham Accords in which the UAE and Bahrain normalized ties with Israel, following Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.

Outgoing Regional Cooperation Minister Esawi Frej signed the MOU on behalf of the Jewish state, while Jordanian minister of water and irrigation, Mohammad Al Najjar, signed for the Hashemite kingdom. Emirati Climate Change and Environment Minister Mariam Al Mheiri signed for the UAE. US climate envoy John Kerry was also present at the signing.

Frej told the Jerusalem Post that the outgoing government is passing down to the incoming one “a legacy of cross-border cooperation that creates hope for the whole region, with states working together to advance the optimal use of natural resources.

“This legacy of action proves the power of peace,” Frej added.

Posted on November 10, 2022

Source: (Bridges for Peace, November 12, 2022)

Photo Credit: einat Solomon/commons.wikimedia.org

Photo License: Wikimedia