AMMAN, May 17 (Xinhua) -- Although Jordan is home to large amounts of oil shale, it is unfeasible to produce oil from shale at present, Jordan's Energy Minister Ibrahim Saif said Wednesday.
"We do not deny that we have large reserve of oil shale, but it is still commercially unfeasible to produce oil from it," the minister said during an interview with the state-run Jordan Television.
The minister said Jordan is not home to large reserve of gas and oil, stressing that the government has facilitated the exploration of gas and oil across Jordan.
"The government cannot explore for gas and oil alone. Therefore, it signed several deals with international companies," he said.
According to official figures, there are some 40 billion tons of oil shale in Jordan.
"Because the price of oil at present is cheap, it is not feasible to produce oil from oil shale," said the minister, stressing that Jordanian human resources have the capabilities to produce oil from shale when needed.
China, he added, provided finance for the largest oil shale power plant in Jordan that is expected to start operating in 2019.
During the interview, the minister added that a project to extend an oil pipeline from Iraq to Jordan will be implemented soon, stressing the importance of such a program.
Jordan, which imports about 97 percent of its energy needs annually, is working on a plan to diversify its energy resources by increasing reliance on renewable energy, oil shale and nuclear energy.
