Lebanon, total blackout, shutdown of two main power plants – Corriere.it

Lebanon in the dark. From today until noon – due to a lack of fuel – the Lebanese electricity network has stopped working and is unlikely to resume work until Monday. To confirm the news, a Lebanese official was a Reuters Which made it clear that the resumption of supply is not expected in the short term.

At the moment, there are two power stations that have stopped working, and they are the two largest stations in the country that have stopped: Al-Zahrani station and Deir Ammar station. The electricity has been cut off since yesterday. Again, according to the official Reuters
The state-owned electricity company is said to be trying to run the stations with military fuel reserves but the process is taking time.

The severe economic crisis caused the blockade This hit the country and led to a 90 percent collapse of the local currency and a general fuel shortage. Importing diesel fuel against the guarantee of treasury advances paid by the Banque du Liban. But the latter is delaying the opening of credit lines to finance fuel supplies to provide for its meager dollar reserves. This situation forced the national electricity company, Electricit de Lebanon, the public authority responsible for the supply of electricity, to significantly rationalize its production. Edl can barely produce 700 megawatts, or two to three hours of electricity per day.

In the face of state rationing, private power generators, already in use for some time in the country, and which mostly run on diesel, are becoming increasingly expensive. According to the World Bank, in 2018, daily rations ranged from three to eleven hours, with significant variations between region and region. The problem affects not only individuals but also businesses, restaurants and hospitals. Another blackout hit the country in July – which also suspended the vaccination campaign –

The government – now headed by Najib Mikati – decreed a financial default in March 2020. The banking system has failed, effectively imposing capital controls on small and medium savers, cutting them off from their currency-heavy checking accounts. The local lira has lost 92% of its value against the dollar in the nearly two years since the crisis erupted. The purchasing power of public sector workers, who receive their salaries in Lebanese pounds, collapsed, as the 2019 salary was about a thousand dollars in Lebanese pounds, and today it is $ 80. Prices of consumer goods and commodities are up significantly, up 120% according to May data. The United Nations reported that more than half of the population lives below the poverty line and that a third of minors sleep without food. Added to this is the lack of electricity in a country that is already on its knees From the explosion that occurred in the port of Beirut more than a year ago.