by Hana Namrouqa | Mar 28,2012 | 00:14 AMMAN — Implementation of the first phase of the Jordan Red Sea Project (JRSP) will start early next year, Minister of Water and Irrigation Mousa Jamani said on Tuesday. Projected to supply the Kingdom with around one billion cubic metres of water by 2022, the JRSP will […]

Read the rest of this entry »

BEIRUT: Lebanon is running out of water. The country was unable to retain almost any of the rain that fell during one of the rainiest winters in years, and personal water consumption remains extremely high. At the beginning of the month Energy and Water Ministry officials took one of the first unified steps to address […]

Read the rest of this entry »

SIDON/BEIRUT: Around 85 percent of companies in the country that sell drinking water do not have a license to do so, Health Minister Ali Hasan Khalil said Thursday as authorities continued to uncover expired goods around the country. The minister, speaking during a news conference on public health and food safety, added that many do […]

Read the rest of this entry »

RAMALLAH, March 21, 2012 (WAFA) – Japan and the Palestinian Authority (PA) inaugurated on Wednesday three projects for community empowerment in the Jordan Valley, according to a press release by representative office of Japan to the PA. The three projects come as part of Japan’s contribution to the PA totaling around $12 million to support […]

Read the rest of this entry »

GAZA, March 27, 2012 (WAFA) – The Jeddah, Saudi Arabia-based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Tuesday signed a number of aid agreements worth a total of $52 million to support several projects in different sectors in Gaza, according to a statement issued by IDB. It said $13 million would go for supporting the reconstruction of 250 […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 03/19/2012 03:32 Conservation, renewables will not be sufficient to satisfy increasing demands. In order to maintain Israel’s energy security for the foreseeable future, the government must refrain from exporting its newfound natural gas supply, as well as ensure that these reserves are not the country’s sole source of electricity, experts said at […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON UDASIN 03/19/2012 23:30 Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau says portion of natural gas in Mediterranean Sea reservoirs should be exported. To maintain the needs of the Israeli economy, the country will need to export a portion of the natural gas in its Mediterranean Sea reservoirs, Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau said […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Cairo says will explore oil, gas sites near maritime border with Israel in effort to ‘stake its hold on the area’ Doron Peskin Published: 03.16.12, 13:27 / Israel Business A source at the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources said Wednesday that Egypt plans to auction exploration sites for oil and gas near its […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Company holding talks with Warburg Pincus equity fund for approximately a half a billion dollars for offshore drilling in Israel Lior Gutman, Calcalist Published: 03.21.12, 08:48 / Israel Business US energy giant ATP has been conducting advanced negotiations with the Warburg Pincus private equity fund over the establishment of a gas and oil investment fund, […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Mar 21,2012 | 22:35 Today marks the World Water Day, an occasion when the issue of water crisis around the world needs to be highlighted. This crisis is acute in Jordan, one of the poorest countries in the world when it comes to water resources. Close to seven billion people inhabit the planet; of these, […]

Read the rest of this entry »

UN agency says most of springs are located on private Palestinian land, publishes testimonies by Palestinians who say they are afraid of approaching water sources due to settler violence. By Zafrir Rinat Settlers in the West Bank have seized control of dozens of springs in the past few years, and often use violence and intimidation […]

Read the rest of this entry »

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Palestinian food production is hampered by limited access to abundant natural water resources, the water authority said Tuesday. In a report to mark World Water Day, observed Wednesday, the Palestinian Water Authority and the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics warned that water shortages lowered food production. “Israeli actions of ongoing siege and […]

Read the rest of this entry »

University of Haifa study raises fears for future food crops. By Zafrir Rinat Global warming is causing genetic changes in wild cereal grains in Israel that could endanger food production, a recent study by University of Haifa scientists reveals. Wild cereal progenitors provide the genetic basis for improving cultivated varieties of wheat and barley. wheat, […]

Read the rest of this entry »

by Taylor Luck | Mar 21,2012 | 23:16 AMMAN — Jordanian and Iraqi energy officials have entered advanced talks over a natural gas deal that would provide the Kingdom with an alternative energy source within five years. According to Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Quteiba Abu Qura, Amman and Baghdad are discussing “in detail” […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Founder of electric vehicle initiative assures company will turn profit; calls to find more ‘Better Places,’ establish successful regulation Tomer Hadar, Calcalist Published: 03.14.12, 08:44 / Israel Business “Ever since last summer, ‘profitable’ has become a dirty word in Israel, but we’ll be profitable,” assured Better Place founder Shai Agassi at the first national conference […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Bronicki Investments sells 11.8% of stock to FIMI fund. By Yoram Gabison Bronicki Investments, owner of the controlling block of shares in Ormat Industries, finalized the sale of 11.8% of the alternative energy company’s capital stock to FIMI Opportunity Fund on Friday. The price: NIS 297 million at NIS 21.67 per share. The price is […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By ARIEH O’SULLIVAN / THE MEDIA LINE 03/18/2012 11:30 International community’s biggest challenge is producing enough nutritional food, delivering it to the hungry. Climate change, water shortages, higher energy prices, crop diseases and a rapidly expanding population. These are all factors that are making it increasingly difficult and risky for farmers and governments to ensure […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Report also foresees a further decrease in natural water resources due to climate change. By Zafrir Rinat The amount of rainwater reaching Lake Kinneret and groundwater reservoirs in Israel has decreased by 11 percent in the last two decades, according to a recent report by the Israel Water Authority. According to the report, which studied […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Water storage in dams reaches 112 million cubic metres Petra | Mar 17,2012 | 23:41 AMMAN — Water storage in the country’s major dams stood at 112 million cubic metres as of Saturday morning, Ministry of Water and Irrigation Spokesperson Adnan Zu’bi said. He noted that the total amount of water stored in the Kingdom’s […]

Read the rest of this entry »

by Hana Namrouqa | Mar 17,2012 | 23:33 AMMAN — Fifty per cent of the Disi Water Conveyance Project’s production wells have been drilled, as overall progress in venture reached 76 per cent, according to a source involved in the implementation of the project. Work on 28 production wells is completed, while the nine piezometer […]

Read the rest of this entry »