Six countries meet in Lebanon to discuss power grid linkage

Six countries met in Beirut Wednesday to discuss how to inter-link via power grids, a project mainly designed to rationalize power consumption, Kuwaiti news agency said.

Ministers of energy from Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Iraq and Turkey asserted importance of energy inter-link and said the project would spur economic growth and would be a suitable opportunity to exchange energy expertise.

Lebanese minister of energy and water Mohammad Beidoun said the meeting "is a positive sign for cooperation in the region." "Lebanon wished the meeting would have been held within peace in the region but we see the Israeli insistence to escalate operations against the Palestinians," said Beidoun.

Syrian minister of electricity Munib Sa'em Al-Dahar said "our project is the fruit of a constructive cooperation with a number of Arab countries and neighboring Turkey, it ultimately aimed at prosperity of peoples."

Egypt, Jordan and Syria have already established linking power grids, "and we are looking forward to Complete the remaining of the first phase, which is to link with Turkey," said Al-Dahar.

Turkish minister of energy, Zeki Cakan, anticipated completion of the whole project in the next three years.

Egyptian minister of electricity and energy Ali al-Saeedi said the project would start with electricity and would then extend to gas, information, communications and transportation.