Ammon News - AMMAN (Petra)--Chairman of the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission Khaled Toukan said Jordan's nuclear program is a strategic choice for the Kingdom's energy future.

He added that quantities of uranium available in the Kingdom are economically feasible and would help in the implementation of the project and acheive stability and independence in the electricity energy field.

Toukan added in a wide ranging interview with Jordan News Agency, Petra that was moderate by its Director General Faisal Al Shboul, that the quantities of uranium discovered in central Jordan stand at 20,000 metric tonnes, adding that uranium concentration projections in the central region are good and range between 200-250 100 parts per million. He said Jordan is continuing a plan to establish 2 nuclear plants. The first, which is under construction, is a 5-megawatt nuclear research reactor at the Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST) for training. The second reactor, Toukan added is a 1,000MW reactor the Khirbet Al Samra. The JAEC chairman said the Kingdom seeks to find a strategic partner to cover at least half of the cost of establishing the first reactor.

Earlier this year, Jordan entered negotiations with French and Russian firms for the construction of the country’s first nuclear reactor.