Jordan Times
Sunday, August 6, 2006
Jordan to supply Lebanon with 10,000 tonnes of gasoline
By Khaled Nuaimat
AMMAN — Jordan will supply Lebanon with 10,000 tonnes of gasoline to help Beirut face the current shortage of oil derivatives, Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company (JPRC) General Manager Ahmad Rifai told The Jordan Times on Saturday.
The supply will be at a rate of 150-200 tonne per day, Rifai indicated.
His Majesty King Abdullah issued directives to the government last week to help supply Lebanon with its needs of gasoline from the national reserve.
According to Rifai, “Jordan’s total reserve now stands at 80,000 tonnes.”
He weathered any concern regarding the local supply as result of the Jordan assistance to Lebanon saying: “Jordan’s daily need of gasoline is 2,400 tonnes. We studied all alternatives to ensure that this quantity would not be affected following our commitment to the Lebanese.”
The JPRC chief added that there is direct contact between the refinery here and the Lebanese energy officials to plan for transportation.
“The gasoline would be transported by land and by Lebanese trucks,” Rifai said, noting that security risks in Lebanon did not help us to participate in transporting the gasoline to Lebanon.
The oil assistance to Lebanon is part of a comprehensive programme that Jordan has been carrying out since the beginning of Israeli aggression on Lebanon.