Amman – The Higher Steering Committee of the Rural Electrification Fund, chaired by Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Dr. Saleh Kharabsheh, approved a list of homes and sites to be connected to the power grid through conventional electrical networks. The approved list includes approximately 186 homes and locations, at a total cost estimated at 719,000 Jordanian dinars.

During the meeting, Dr. Kharabsheh stated that the committee approved a number of projects and sites to be electrified at the expense of the Rural Electrification Fund (REF), including residential clusters and economic activities. This comes following the expansion of the service under amended regulations for electricity provision through the fund.

Engineer Hisham Al-Momani, Director of the Electricity and Rural Electrification Directorate at the Ministry, emphasized that the decisions include residential clusters consisting of five homes located outside the zoning boundaries, with a total project cost of 179,000 dinars.

The decisions also cover clusters of at least three homes outside organizational boundaries, at a cost of 114,000 dinars, in addition to individual homes located outside the zoning areas that can benefit from existing electricity networks, with a total cost of 52,000 dinars.

According to Al-Momani, the list approved by the Higher Committee includes low-income households within the organizational boundaries and within electricity distribution company zones, at a total cost of 10,000 dinars, as part of efforts to support underprivileged families.

The REF support list also includes productive projects such as poultry, cattle, sheep, and fish farms located in poverty pockets outside the zoning boundaries. These projects were implemented at a total cost of 73,000 dinars, reflecting the Ministry’s commitment to supporting farmers, encouraging livestock production, and promoting self-reliance.

Additionally, the list includes road lighting projects leading to cemeteries, with an allocated cost of 40,000 dinars, aiming to facilitate nighttime burial processes for citizens.

The REF has also contributed to productive, industrial, and investment projects in poverty pockets and unregulated areas, under the fund’s approved criteria. These projects are supported on the condition that they create job opportunities for local Jordanian residents. The REF’s contribution to such projects amounted to 153,000 dinars.

Al-Momani added that the targeted categories for REF support include farms with artesian wells located outside zoning boundaries, with a total cost of 59,000 dinars, to support farmers, boost the agricultural sector, and contribute to achieving food security.

Finally, REF also supported electrification of government-related projects, agricultural cooperatives, and charitable associations, at a total cost of 39,000 dinars.