Eng. Sameh Fahmi, Minister of Petroleum held talks with Eng. Sufian Al-Allaw, Syrian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Dr. Khaled El Shereda, Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mohamed El Safadi, charge Lebanese Minister of Energy. It was agreed upon forming a joint working group to study the use of this network in an adverse exchange among the participating Countries, which paves the way to greater flexibility in gas exports and imports among them.
Eng. Fahmi declared that an agreement was reached among Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon to transform the Arab Gas Pipeline to an Arab Gas network to be linked with the European one after joining Iraq, with the possibility of making use of other resources of gas to be pumped through this network to increase the economic return of the Pipeline’s participating coutries.
The Arab countries’ Ministers, participating in the pipeline network, in addition to the Turkish Energy Minister, decided to carry out a field visit, for the first time, to the work sites of the Arab Gas Pipeline at Jordan, Syria and Lebanon (early next month). The Egyptian gas is scheduled to reach Syria before the end of the current year, and to Lebanon, early next year. Moreover, it was agreed that Syria would implement the 60 km length link inside its territories till the Turkish borders in preparation for linking the two networks by the next year.
Eng. Sufian Al-Allaw, Syrian Minister of Petroleum, assured that studying agreement between Syria and Iraq for developing the Iraqi gas field, Ekas, located at the Syrian-Iraqi borders, is underway. However, this comes as a preparation to link it to the Syrian gas network. It is worthmentioning that the field is characterized by its huge gas reserves. Dr. khaled Al-shereda, Jordanian Minister of Energy, clarified that initial agreement for increasing the exported gas quantities to his country has been completed, in order to meet the growing demand for energy.
Mohamed Al-Safadi, Lebanese Minister of Energy, said that the Arab gas will be utilized in developing and upgrading power generations in north Lebanon.

(MOP)