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Israel, Jordan, UAE ink ‘water-for-energy’ MoU
November 08, 2022
Jordan to provide Israel with 600 MW of solar in return for 200 million cubic meters of desalinated water
Israel and Jordan on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to move ahead with a water-for-energy deal after an initial examination of the project found it to be feasible.
The idea, first announced a year ago, is for Jordan to build 600 megawatts of solar power capacity that would be exported to Israel. In return, Israel would provide water-scarce Jordan with 200 million cubic meters (mcm) of desalinated water.
The MoU was signed at the COP27 climate summit in Egypt at an event hosted by the United Arab Emirates, which in 2020 became the first Gulf state to normalize relations with Israel and has been a partner in the project.
Israel's Energy Ministry said that the signing "expresses the countries' shared desire to deal with the climate crisis through cross-border cooperation."
Outgoing Regional Cooperation Minister Esawi Frej signed for Israel. Outgoing Energy Minister Karine Elharrar was not in attendance at the UN conference being held at the Red Sea resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Mohammad Al Najjar, the Jordanian minister of water and irrigation, and UAE Climate Change and Environment Minister Mariam Al Mheiri also signed the MoU.
The basis for Tuesday's signing was a declaration of intent signed by the three parties on the sidelines of the Dubai Expo November of last year. The initial signing was held in the presence of U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry.
"The MoU essentially continues the examination of the benefits and feasibility of the plan," i24NEWS Middle East correspondent Ariel Oseran said.
Jordan’s Al-Rai newspaper reported that the MoU stated that it "involves only the expression of intent by the three parties, and does not create or affect any rights or obligations under international law.”
The conclusions of the examination are to be submitted to the next UN climate summit (COP28), in Dubai.
"While this is another step in the right direction, nothing tangible will happen before November 2023," Oseran said.
"While another historic milestone in the warming ties between Israel and its neighbors, there is still a long ways to go until the sides to the agreement start to enjoy from its fruit."