Majority of Jordanians champion energy self-reliance — survey

AMMAN — The majority of Jordanians, at 97.4 per cent, encourage achieving self-reliance in energy, according to a recent opinion poll.

The poll conducted by EDAMA Energy, Water and Environment, surveyed 585 people across the Kingdom, including specialists and non-specialists in energy sector, according to an EDAMA statement sent to The Jordan Times on Sunday.

Eighty-nine per cent of the respondents hold the view that attaining energy self-reliance will attract investments and stimulate the business environment, the statement said.

The survey results indicated that 94.5 per cent of the sample favours expanding the adoption of renewable energy resources while 91 per cent of the respondents were not satisfied with the current electricity prices.

The survey also showed that 86.7 per cent of the respondents are not satisfied with the mechanism related to managing the energy file in the Kingdom. However, 83 per cent indicated that the existing policies aimed at stimulating renewable energy and self-reliance is not sufficient.

Sixty-three per cent of the respondents expressed confidence in the role of the Energy and Minerals Regulatory Commission (EMRC) in stimulating the economy, while 73 per cent said that the role of commission is not efficient.   

Regarding the decisions made by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the survey showed that 58 per cent revealed that the Kingdom had not benefitted from the COVID-19 pandemic to increase self-reliance in the energy field.

As for the suggested solutions to improve the Kingdom’s energy sector, 69.7 per cent said that NEPCO’s debts, which totalled some JD5.3 billion in 2020, are hindering the development of the energy sector, while 61 per cent said that the problem could not be resolved by privatisation.

Seventy-nine per cent of the respondents said that stimulating the Kingdom’s economy could be achieved through opening the doors to investors and developers, according to the statement.