Lebanon could be completely deprived of electricity at the beginning of June, following a decision of the Constitutional Council on the basis of an appeal by the deputies of the Lebanese Forces, suspending the granting of additional credits for the purchase of fuel oil necessary for the production plants of electricity.
Ainsi, certaines unités de production devraient arrêter dès le 18 mai, comme à Zouk dans le Kesrouan et le Metn. Les pannes devraient se poursuivre avec l’arrêt prévu de Deir el Ammar au Nord du Liban dès le 25 mai, puis de Zahrani au Sud du Liban le 28 mai. Les autres unités de Zouk devraient suivre le 4 juin et la panne devrait se généraliser à tout le territoire dès le 8 juin, si les autorités libanaises ne sont pas en mesure d’assurer le financement du fioul nécessaire aux centrales électriques.
As a reminder, the outgoing minister Raymond Ghajjar had already warned several times against possible power cuts as early as last March. However, he had succeeded in obtaining a vote in parliament in favor of an advance of 200 million dollars, on March 29, in the face of threats of closures of hospitals and closed institutions, however necessary in the face of the Covid19 epidemic in Lebanon.
3 members of the République Forte parliamentary bloc (Lebanese Forces) Georges Akis, Pierre Bou Assi and Eddy Abillamah, then lodged an appeal with the Constitutional Council, opposing the granting of an advance up to a maximum of 300 billion Lebanese pounds from the public treasury to Electricité du Liban, estimating that these sums would be taken from the reserve requirements of the Banque du Liban. This appeal has since been accepted, suspending the arrival of new fuel oil shipments and their unloading in Lebanon.