Making the desert bloom
Unable to rely on neighbours’ supplies, Jordan wants renewables, gas and kerogen to secure its energy
THE inauguration in April of an 80-megawatt wind farm in Ma'an, 225km south of Amman, marked another step forward in Jordan's plan to diversify its sources of energy and trim its dependence on imported hydrocarbons. There was a time when Jordan compensated for the lack of its own reserves by importing subsidised oil from Iraq and buying natural gas via the Arab Gas Pipeline from Egypt. But since 2003 and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime it has received no oil from Iraq and after the uprising in Egypt in 2011 the gas supply was cut repeatedly, before stopping altogether. Jordan needs alternatives. The absence of Egyptian gas required the costly import of further volumes of oil for ele
Also in this section
5 March 2026
Gas is a central pillar of Colombia’s energy system, but declining production poses a significant challenge, and LNG will be increasingly needed as a stopgap. A recent major offshore gas discovery offers hope, but policy improvements are also required, Camilo Morales, secretary general of Naturgas, the Colombian gas association, tells Petroleum Economist
4 March 2026
The continent’s inventories were already depleted before conflict erupted in the Middle East, causing prices to spike ahead of the crucial summer refilling season
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
