‘ASPIRE’ Project Support Agreement Signed: A New Era In The Palestinian Energy-Sector

04/07/2022

 

‘ASPIRE’ Project Support Agreement Signed: A New Era In The Palestinian Energy-Sector

 

 

Ramallah, Monday, July 04, 2022 -

 

Under the auspices and in the presence of the Palestinian Prime Minister, Mohammed Shtayyeh, the Government of Palestine signed an agreement worth $23.5 million to support the project "Advancing Sustainability in Performance, Infrastructure, and Reliability of the Energy Sector" (ASPIRE), from the World Bank with the support of Norway, the Netherlands, the UK, and the European Union on Monday at the Prime Minister's office in Ramallah.

The World Bank Country Director for Palestine, Mr. Kanthan Shankar, signed the agreement on behalf of the World Bank, while Fareed Ghannam, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance, signed the agreement on behalf of the Palestinian government, in the presence of Zafer Melhem, the Head of the Energy and National Resources Authority, Fareed Ghannam, the Representative of Norway to Palestine, Torunn Viste, and representatives of donors and electricity transmission and distribution companies.

 

“Palestine's energy sector is one of the top priority sectors for the Palestinian government, especially investments in solar power energy and the improvement and development of electricity networks in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.”

 

Estephan Salameh, the Palestinian Prime Ministers’ adviser for Planning and Aid Coordination, made the previous remark and stated, “This project is in phase II of the strategic project to support the energy sector worth $200 million. The first phase, worth $63 million, was signed and launched in 2020, and the second phase took place today. The other stages will be signed and launched in the coming years.”

The Prime Ministers Adviser on Planning and Aid Coordination further stated: “The agreement signed today includes the improvement and development of electricity infrastructure and distribution networks, support for investment in the solar power sector through a public-private partnership, in addition to the provision of prepayment meters, and the capacity development program.”

Salameh concluded by expressing his gratitude to Norway, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the European Union for their contribution to the project, the World Bank, and the technical staff that worked to achieve the agreement.

For his part, World Bank Director in Palestine Kanthan Shankar assured the World Bank's continued commitment to partnering with donors to implement phase II and the following phases of the project to advance the energy sector in Palestine.

 

 

 

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