Jordan’s Ministry of Water and Irrigation has qualified seven bids, out of a total of 17 applications, for a re-issued tender for the construction of the Al-Wehda Dam. The tender’s winner the will be announced later this year.
The proposal envisions the construction of a smaller damn than previously planned, with a capacity of 125 cubic meters at a reduced cost of $120 million, compared with the initial $220 million tender. It is to be built on the northern Yarmuk River, situated between Syria and the Kingdom.
The project consists of pumping 100 million cubic meters of water from 65 wells from Disi, 325 kilometers south of Amman. The two countries have agreed that Jordan will obtain 225 million cubic meters of water from the Yarmuk River as well as 75 percent of the electricity from the project, which is expected to generate 18,800 megawatts of power per year.
The project was put on hold in the 1980s, as political tension escalated between Jordan and Syria, mainly over Syria’s disapproval with Jordan's late ruler, King Hussein’s moderate approach in negotiating with Israel. The project was reactivated when Hussein's eldest son, Abdullah II, ascended to the throne in February 1999. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
