Power supply restored in Lebanon after army supplies fuel

By Mahmut Geldi

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AA) - Electricity generation resumed in Lebanon for a few hours a day after the army provided fuel supplies on Sunday, authorities announced.

The Deir Ammar and Zahrani power plants began operating again after receiving 6 million liters of fuel supplied from army stocks, Energy Minister Walid Fayad said in a written statement.

Lebanon's electricity grid had collapsed on Saturday due to an ongoing fuel crisis in the country.

Fayad noted that the fuel provided by the army would last three days and that after this, two other power plants in the capital Beirut would be put into service.

The fuel crisis in Lebanon started on Aug. 11, when the Central bank decided to stop importing fuel on the exchange rate of 3,900 liras to the US dollar. The crisis led to prolonged electricity cuts on residential areas, adding more burdens on the Lebanese people.

Lebanon is facing a severe economic crisis, with the local currency losing nearly all of its value against the dollar and failure to form a government for 13 months.

Currently, electricity is provided only for up to one or two hours per day.

* Writing by Seda Sevencan