Jordan and the UAE signed four agreements to establish a railway investment project, worth $2.3 billion, to link the port of Aqaba with the mining areas in Al-Shidiya and Ghor Al-Safi.
According to Petra News Agency, Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh, during his attendance at the signing ceremony of the agreements, in the presence of the UAE Minister of Investment Mohammed Hassan Al-Suwaidi, stressed that “this important strategic investment project reflects the depth of the fraternal relations between the two brotherly countries, which enjoy the care and attention of the Jordanian King Abdullah II and the UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.”
Al-Khasawneh said: “We signed Emirati investment documents worth $2.3 billion to link the port of Aqaba to the mining areas in Al-Shidiya and Ghor Al-Safi.”
He pointed out that “these documents and the package of targeted investment projects come within the context of a memorandum of understanding, agreement and package of investment projects signed by Jordan with the brotherly Emirati side in the presence of King Abdullah II and his brother Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in November 2023, and this investment package amounts to about $5.5 billion.”
Al-Khasawneh continued: “We are always happy with the extended strategic partnership and fraternal relations that link Jordan and the Emirates, which are under the shadow of the close fraternal relationship that brings together King Abdullah II and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan,” stressing that “signing these documents comes as an embodiment of the fraternal and strategic relations, and in a way that benefits both sides.”
He stated that “the documents that were signed constitute an integrated cooperative framework in the railway sector, and will contribute to the transfer of technical expertise and skills in the fields of railway construction and operation.”
The Prime Minister stated that “this project needs five years to start the actual operation of the railway, i.e. in 2030, as during the current year 2024 and until the end of 2025, the detailed studies required on the railway tracks and the handling requirements for potash and phosphate will be completed, and the target is to offer tenders for the implementation of the construction works in early 2026.”
He pointed out that “the establishment of this railway will allow us to significantly increase our logistical and export capabilities, with a volume starting at 16 million tons of phosphate and potash products.”
Al-Khasawneh added: “This vital project for the Kingdom will link the most important mining sites to the industrial port and the phosphate port to Wadi Al-Yatm in Aqaba, in addition to improving logistical and export efficiency, which will contribute to providing new job opportunities in various logistical fields, mining sectors, railways and other related sectors.”
He said: “The railway line will start from the phosphate port and the industrial port in Aqaba to Wadi Al-Yatm in the north to Al-Shidiya, and another line from Wadi Al-Yatm in the west to Ghor Al-Safi via Wadi Araba. This project will be implemented under the umbrella of the Jordan Investment Fund Law and will take 5 years to implement.”
The Jordanian Prime Minister stated that “talks are underway with our Emirati brothers to re-establish the idea of establishing a dry port in Ma’an, and that it may be too early to talk about this project widely, but the railway project lays the foundation for re-establishing a dry port in Ma’an to serve the logistics network and transportation sector in the Kingdom,” announcing “the continued, permanent cooperation with our brothers in the Emirates to the mutual benefit of the two brotherly countries,” adding: “They are one body and one mind, and we are protected by the strategic and historical relationship that brings together the leaderships of the two brotherly countries and peoples, which is a model for Arab brotherly relations.”
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2024-09-07 16:20:36