Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Jordan Negotiates Gas Deal with Israel

Summary of Article: Israel recently discovered that it has natural gas reserves that it can export. Israel is in negotiations with Egypt to export the gas, greatly relieving Jordan's energy crisis. Until now, Jordan has relied on Egypt, which has had a two year shortage in supplying gas to Jordan. As a result, Jordan does not have enough cooking gas and electricity. How would gas get to Jordan? Some same it would be transported through a pipe line through the dead sea, which could be set up quickly; others say it faces major engineering hurdles to get it to Jordan. Such a deal would be wonderful for Israeli-Jordan relations, but would open Jordan up to major criticism from the Arab world. Israel hopes to become a major exporter to Asia and Europe, but has yet to sign any deals.

Questions for Kids (after summarizing article):
  • Why do we need natural gas? What do we use it for? Can you find an example at home of ways we use gas? 
  • Why is it a huge relief for Israel that it has its own natural gas reserve? (Discuss ramifications of being energy-independent)
  • Why has Egypt had trouble supplying gas to Jordan? (Remember current event two days ago about unrest in Egypt?)
  • Why would a deal be good and bad for Jordan? 
  • Why does Israel want to become a major exporter? (Make Israel less isolated, increase revenue, etc.)

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