Ammon News - The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources launched the fourth phase of a project to install solar cells to serve 800 underprivileged households, benefiting from the National Aid Fund (NAF), in the governorates of northern Irbid, Jerash and Ajloun, at an estimated cost of JD800,000.

In a press statement on Wednesday, Minister of Energy, Saleh Kharabsheh, said this phase, which is expected to complete during the second half of 2023, comes within the ministry's efforts to support underprivileged families and NAF beneficiaries and spur use of renewable energy sources in the Kingdom's various regions.

Installing solar cells connected to the national electric grid is financed by "Fils Al Reef" deposits (fee for each kilowatt of used energy on households) and would reduce the value of the monthly bill to the project's beneficiaries, he noted.

The project, he noted, enhances efforts to use local energy sources in the production of electricity from solar energy, which helps beneficiaries to reduce energy bill costs and enhances the ministry's contribution to sustainable development endeavors.

The minister also highlighted the project’s role in raising awareness on rationalizing energy consumption and enhancing contribution of renewable energy in the total energy mix, he pointed out.

For his part, Director of Electricity and Rural Electrification at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Ziad Saeeda, said the number of applications submitted from various governorates since the beginning of 2022 until end of last July to benefit from this project reached 1,098, adding that 935 applications were approved for implementation.