2024-07-11 23:18:51
Amid the drums of war beating on its southern border between Israel and Hezbollah, the electricity crisis is back in the spotlight in Lebanon, threatening total darkness in the midst of a tourist season. This is due to the Central Bank of Lebanon not paying for shipments of Iraqi fuel that it supplies to power plants to produce energy.
According to media reports, the private Iraqi oil marketing company will stop unloading fuel tankers before it receives the money owed for months.
Minister of Energy and Water Walid Fayyad confirmed that “Lebanon will soon fall into total darkness, and electricity will be completely cut off from essential facilities such as Beirut Airport and the port, if the Parliament does not quickly issue a law allowing the Central Bank of Lebanon to transfer funds to pay the cost of Iraqi fuel.”
He explained, “We have contacted the Beirut Airport administration to be prepared to operate private electricity generators if the Iraqi fuel problem is not resolved.”
Three years ago, the Iraqi and Lebanese governments concluded an agreement to supply Lebanon with fuel to produce energy, increasing the hours of power supply that do not exceed seven hours per day.
However, the acting governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Wassim Mansouri, refuses to transfer funds to pay for the Iraqi fuel shipments without a law being issued by the House of Representatives allowing him to do so, which did not happen.
Minister Fayyad said, “In January 2023, the government sent several decrees to the House of Representatives to be converted into a law that allows the Bank of Lebanon to transfer the required funds to the Iraqi government to pay the cost of fuel for Electricité du Liban.”
He pointed out that “the funds are available to pay the cost of Iraqi fuel, but their disbursement requires a legal procedure by Parliament.”
The Minister of Energy considered that “the solution to the crisis is possible in three ways: First, the Iraqi government issues an exception to postpone payment, because the work of constitutional institutions in Lebanon is not proceeding normally. Second, a law is issued by the House of Representatives authorizing the Central Bank of Lebanon to transfer the required funds, and third, the Speaker of the House of Representatives or the Prime Minister requests the Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Wassim Mansouri, to transfer the funds directly from the Central Bank of Lebanon. This scenario was repeated during the term of the former Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Riad Salameh.”
4 hours of electricity per day
For three years, Lebanon has been relying mainly on Iraqi fuel to produce electricity, while one plant (Zahrani Plant – South Lebanon) out of 6 thermal plants produces electricity at a rate of 4 hours per day, during which essential facilities such as Beirut Airport, the port, and the main water pumps are operated. The remaining hours are provided by private generators.
material for ridicule
Every time the Ministry of Energy announces that one of the electricity production plants has stopped working due to fuel shortages, the issue becomes a subject of ridicule on social media, as the Lebanese have come to rely heavily on private generators to obtain electricity, while the Electricité du Liban and its production plants have almost stopped working for years.
Last updated: July 11, 2024 – 17:41
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2024-07-11 23:18:51