21 August 2010
BEIRUT: There is no radical solution for the electricity shortage in Lebanon other than new investments in the fields of power production, according to the director general of Electricite du Liban (EDL).
Kamal Hayek was quoted by The Central News Agency (CNA) Friday as saying that the shortage in electricity supply in Lebanon ranged between 700 and 900 megawatts, adding that any ship called in to alleviate the situation could only supply an additional 200 or 220 megawatts.
According to Hayek, who spoke to a local radio station, receiving additional electricity supplies from Syria and Egypt or from a ship that would arrive within 20 days would be helpful.
While supporting such moves, Hayek said “they do not represent a solution, but only [temporarily] increase the hours of available electricity supply.”
Hayek noted that state electricity supplies for the city of Beirut are currently at 21 hours a day, whereas in other areas ranged between 15 and 16 hours. “We are able to produce 1,650 megawatts, which are equally distributed in Lebanese areas outside Beirut,” he said.
Hayek said inequality in electricity distribution occurred when residents broke into transformer stations in some parts of the country and diverted power back to their neighborhoods.
He stressed that EDL was working at its utmost capacity, adding that the supply of electricity from Syria and Egypt would resume by early September.
Meanwhile, the electricity transformer in the Jabal al-Baddawi in the north exploded on Friday, leading to a complete blackout in the area.
Inhabitants of the area issued a statement attributing the explosion to the fact that the transformer was overloaded after it started to supply power to a new residential project in the area. The residents urged EDL to install a new electricity transformer before fixing the damage to the old one, given the current heat wave.
Beirut and southern areas have seen a number of riots over the previous days in protest of electricity rationing, during which angry crowds burned tires and barricaded main roads.
A statement issued by Baabda MP Ali Ammar, a Hizbullah official, said that the lawmaker held a meeting at his office on Friday to discuss means to tackle the electricity shortage “that has exceeded all limits, threatening the economic, social and living dimensions of people.|”
The meeting was attended by Ammar’s colleague, Baabda MP Bilal Farhat along with local officials and engineers.
Copyright The Daily Star 2010.
