Mujawar inspects natural gas project in Belhaf

SHABWA, Sep 14 (Saba) - Prime minister Ali Muhammad Mujawar paid on Sunday an inspection visit to the Belhaf natural gas project and listened to an explanation on the implementation process.

The giant project cost is estimated at $ 4 billion and the project is run by the French Total Petroleum Company.

Minister of Oil and Minerals Ameer al-Aidrus said that the project is 87% completed
of the station, 96% of the pipeline and 43.3% of the other facilities.

He affirmed that the first pipeline with 3.3 million metric ton of gas would be
operated during the first quarter of 2009 and the second pipeline in the second
quarter. Accordingly, Yemen will produce about 6.8 million metric ton of natural gas
annually, he said.

Prime minister also inspected the Ataq electricity station, security station project
and the town central hospital.

He reaffirmed that the government has approved plans to enhance electricity
efficiency in the province of Shabwa through providing extra ten megawatts, five of
which to be provided during the next few weeks and the others during the next year.

FR