Ammon News - AMMAN (Petra) – The Higher Council for Science and Technology's National Centre for Research and Development NCRD on Sunday signed an agreement with the French Solar Euromed firm to launch the first pilot solar energy station and laboratory in southern Jordan.

The new facility, to be set up in the district of Shoubak with a capacity of 510 KW at a cost of €4.5, is part of the national concentrated solar and wind energy capacity-building project financed by the European Union through the European Renewable Energy Aid Program for Jordan.

NCRD president Khaled Shraideh, who signed the agreement with Solar Euromed board chairman Mark Bin Jamil, said his centre is a research facility working in the transfer of up-to-date clean energy technology and seeking to provide technical support to the Jordanian government through conducting feasibility studies on renewable energy systems.

The signing, he said, allows for the construction of the pioneering station as a research and development facility that provides training for local and regional manpower on solar energy operations, productivity and know-how to raise production and the quantities of generated electricity.

The solar and wind energy capacity building program is being carried out in cooperation with the Royal Scientific Society, which will administer the pilot station after its construction and run specialized courses for local and regional staff members.