Jordan to harness Risha gas field's geothermal energy

Jordan’s ministry of energy and mineral resources and Amman-based Harmony Investment Company have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work on harnessing the Risha gas field's geothermal energy for power generation and use in other industrial applications, state-owned Jordon News Agency reported on March 14.

Minister Saleh Kharabsheh and Harmony's CEO Khalil Abu Al-Rubb inked the MoU. The National Petroleum Company (NPC) was also a party to the agreement.

In a statement, Kharabsheh said the deal allows Harmony to study unproductive gas wells in the Risha field and convert them for geothermal energy production. The minister added that global expertise will also be leveraged to exploit geothermal energy from abandoned wells by conducting technical, financial, and administrative studies.

Abu Al-Rubb said the project seeks to generate geothermal energy from abandoned gas wells through a closed-loop system.

NPC's director-general Mohammed Khasawneh said the targeted area has a very high ground temperature gradient at a depth of 2,500 m, adding that the NPC will cooperate with Harmony to explore geothermal energy.

Risha gas field is located in eastern Jordan, near the border with Iraq.