In a joint venture with Masdar and other international companies, the first utility scale wind power project in the Middle East was inaugurated last Thursday by King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussain of Jordan. The UAE had pledged to assist other developing nations in their quest for increasing dependence on renewable energy during the recently […]

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By Mohammad Ghazal – Dec 20,2015 AMMAN — Jordan on Sunday signed an agreement to build a $128 million solar-run power plant with a total capacity of 100 megawatts. The plant, which will be located in Al Qweira in the south of the country, will be owned by the government and financed by a grant […]

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AMMAN — The Council of Ministers on Sunday extended the deadline for scrapping old fuel-run cars and exchanging them for hybrid vehicles until the end of 2016, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. The decision was taken in light of the great demand on hybrid vehicles. The deadline was supposed to expire by the […]

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By JT – Dec 17,2015 AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday inaugurated the Tafileh Wind Project, considered the first such renewablel energy project at the domestic and regional levels. With a capacity of 117-megawatt, the wind farm, implemented in accordance with the Royal vision aimed at diversifying the sources of energy and boosting […]

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Dec 19,2015 AMMAN — The National Centre for Energy Research is currently preparing tenders to implement renewable energy projects at 11 public and private institutions to provide 4 million kilowatt hours, which annually cost JD800,000, Walid Shaheen, president of the centre, said Saturday. The scheme is implemented in cooperation with the Energy Ministry and partially […]

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By Omar Obeidat – Dec 16,2015 AMMAN –– Around 400 mosques in the Kingdom are currently generating power from solar energy, Awqaf Ministry Secretary General Abdul Munem Hiyari said Wednesday. In addition, hundreds of other mosques are also set to switch to solar energy in the near future, Hiyari told The Jordan Times, noting that […]

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Dec 15,2015 AMMAN — HRH Princess Sanaa Asem, chairperson of the higher oversight committee at the Arab Renewable Energy Commission (AREC), on Tuesday inaugurated the 2nd International Investment Forum for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, held to discuss challenges facing the renewable energy sector in the Arab world. At the opening of the three-day forum, […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/21/2015 The bill, proposed by MK Eitan Broshi (Zionist Union), calls for setting national targets for producing electricity from renewable energy sources. The Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved a bill on Sunday designed to regulate the renewable energy sector in Israel while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating new jobs in the […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/13/2015 As a result of the ministry’s order, about 1.4 terawatts will be diverted from coal to natural gas in 2016. To reduce air pollution in the Hadera region, the Environmental Protection Ministry has demanded that the Israel Electric Corporation significantly reduce its coal use at the Orot Rabin power station in […]

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Israeli company this week opened the world’s largest desalinization facility in California. Reuters Dec 18, 2015 Israel’s IDE Technologies, which opened a billion-dollar desalination plant in California this week, is helping to plan 10 new facilities throughout the United States, the company’s CEO said on Wednesday. Located in Carlsbad on the Pacific coast, the plant […]

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Najib Saab 17/12/2015 As a good climate agreement was sealed in Paris last week, the Arab Forum for Environment and Development can be proud to have been part of the process. AFED’s flagship report in 2009, titled “Impact of Climate Change on Arab Countries,” provided solid arguments for negotiators that Arabs gain from a strong […]

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MOHAMED EL-ASHRY 7/12/2015 Climate change, once considered an issue for the future, has now moved firmly into the present. A few days before a new climate change deal is due to be agreed in Paris, the question is no longer whether there will be an agreement but what shape and how strong it will be. […]

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By DANI OR AND SHMUEL ASSOULINE 12/21/2015 The unprecedented level of public awareness and the global political organization mobilized to address potential consequences of global climate change have pushed aside a potentially more urgent global challenge linked only indirectly with climate change – securing sufficient food production capabilities to meet the needs of a rapidly […]

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A new study says climate change will cause growth of Israel’s economy to slow until 2055, after which the economy will significantly shrink by the end of the century. Dr. Daniel Madar 12.19.15 Climate change could lead to the collapse of Israel’s economy within a few decades, says a new study. According to researchers, climate […]

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Only full economic and political cooperation will help make Paris accord a reality – and Israel is no exception. Haaretz Editorial Dec 14, 2015 The climate conference that concluded in Paris on Saturday resulted in the signing of the first agreement on steps to halt climate change to which almost every country in the world […]

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Consumers won’t sacrifice to alleviate global warming, but as governments force technological change, Startup Nation could be a big beneficiary. David Rosenberg Dec 17, 2015 The debate roiling Israel over the strategic value of its natural-gas reserves (or lack thereof) is just so 20th-century. Having a pool of oil or gas beneath you is still […]

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Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) said in a statement that the transition to carbon-free economy seems to be faster than expected, in light of the strong climate agreement sealed in Paris. AFED Secretary General, Najib Saab, urged Arab countries to “immediately start diversifying their economies, and revisit their current growth targets, in order […]

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Nick Fillmore Nick Fillmore is a Toronto-based freelance journalist and social activist. His work at the CBC over more than 30 years included the broadcast of several investigative documentaries. He was a member of the editorial board of THIS magazine and was a founder of the Canadian Association of Journalists. Countries taking part in the […]

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introductory text + video The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, or COP21, set a target of limiting carbon emissions and keep average temperature increases below 2 degrees Celsius. The deal, which brought the climate change issue back to the top of the news agenda, was hailed as a success by the mainstream media […]

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By JT – Dec 13,2015 AMMAN — MASE, a Jordan-based regional clean energy developer and installer has won the Middle East Solar Industry Association’s (MESIA) award for 2015 “Rooftop Solar Project” for a multi-household project comprising rooftop solar photovoltaic cell installations for 400 low-income households across Jordan. The project received the award last Thursday at […]

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