Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Solar Country Notes

Jordan
Jordan lies in the so-called earth-sun belt area and has a high solar potential, with annual average insolation in the region of 1 800 kWh/m²/yr.

The Jordanian WEC Member Committee reports that a number of studies and surveys on the utilisation of solar energy have been made for various locations, through the so-called Phoebus Project. Their outcome was encouraging and indicated that the utilisation of solar energy for remote applications is feasible.

The use of solar energy for thermal applications, including electricity generation, is technically possible, owing to the high solar energy intensity (which exceeds 2 000 kWh/m²/yr at some locations) and other favourable factors. From an economic point of view, however, solar power plants are not yet viable and would need additional support to be competitive with conventionally generated power.

Currently the main use of solar energy is for domestic water heating, with approximately 30% of houses having such installations; to supply this market, more than 25 manufacturers are producing locally-designed solar water heater systems.

In addition, photovoltaic systems are used in remote areas throughout the country. PV installations cover a variety of applications, such as water pumping, telecommunications, schools and others, with a reported total capacity of 184 kWp.