Jordan sees Egypt resuming gas supplies early May

Egypt will resume supplying gas to Jordan from early May after the flow was disrupted by repeated attacks on its pipeline, a Jordanian government official said on Saturday. Egypt informed Jordan that it would "resume gas deliveries of 100 million cubic metres per day to the kingdom early next month," the unidentified official was quoted as saying by the official Petra news agency. On Monday, Amman expressed concern that cuts in Egyptian gas supplies could cost the kingdom more than two billion dollars in 2012. Since 2011, the pipeline supplying gas from Egypt to both Israel and Jordan has been attacked 14 times. Egypt had on April 21 announced its decision to cancel its gas exports to Israel, saying the Jewish state had not met certain clauses of their contract. Cairo then said it was ready to resume exports to Israel but at a "new price and new conditions." Egypt supplies roughly 40 percent of Israel's gas. Meanwhile, Egyptian gas covers 80 percent of electricity production demand in Jordan, which imports 95 percent of its energy needs. Gas supplies from Egypt plunged from 300 million cubic metres a day in 2009 to 78 million cubic metres in 2011, Jordan's Electricity Regulatory Commission head Ahmad Hyasat has said. Amman buys 10,000 barrels of crude oil a day from Baghdad at discount prices, and has repeatedly asked for supplies to be boosted.