Qatar to boost electricity in Syria with natural gas supply
Qatar will provide natural gas supplies to Syria, in order to tackle the war-hit country’s severe electricity shortages, The New Arab reported on March 14th.
The initiative is being carried out through the Qatar Fund for Development, which is giving this aid in order to contribute to “alleviating the suffering of the Syrian people and improving living conditions.”
Qatar’s state news agency said an agreement has been struck between the development fund of Qatar and the energy ministry of Jordan to give Damascus “an approved supply of natural gas” through Jordan.
The funding from Qatar will provide the energy ministry with a grant to give Syria the gas, the fund wrote to Reuters via email.
The initiative intends to tackle the extreme lack of electricity production in Syria.
Saleh al-Kharabsheh, the Jordanian energy minister, told his country’s state news agency that the initiative would be entirely funded by Qatar’s fund.
This support for the new Syrian rulers follows Qatar’s opposition to former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with Qatar being the firmest backers of the rebels-turned rulers, that took over after Assad.
Initially, 400 megawatts of electricity will be generated, but this will rise in accordance with the network’s needs, sources told Syria TV.
According to a US official the gas deal got the nod from Donald Trump’s administration, but did not say how this was communicated.
The New Arab, Reuters
