NNA - Minister of Energy and Water, Dr. Walid Fayad, on Tuesday welcomed US Ambassador to Lebanon, Dorothy Shea, with whom he discussed preparations underway within the energy sector, especially those leading to an increase in power supply nationwide.
For his part, Minister Fayad said that he had sensed Ambassador Shea’s ongoing commitment to help with agreements to import gas from Egypt and electricity from Jordan, as well as with the remaining steps leading to the final approval of the electricity plan, which is listed on the cabinet's agenda tomorrow.
“Presenting this plan to the public opinion is a demand made by the funders, especially the World Bank," Fayad added, stressing that "this plan is not politicized, but based on scientific foundations and a guiding scheme developed by France’s EDF.”
“The second step involves securing funds from the World Bank, and the third step requires the approval of the US administration regarding the Caesar Act, and the US ambassador has reiterated commitment to drop this project from the Caesar's sanctions list."
The following are remarks made by U.S. Ambassador, Dorothy Shea, during her meeting with Minister Fayad:
“Good morning, and thank you, Your Excellency, Mr. Minister, for the really positive discussion that we had this morning. I am encouraged when I hear about the continued progress on these regional energy deals. It is a long and complicated process, and I would urge the audiences out there to not believe the naysayers who would have you believe that there is no progress. You know, I just reviewed some very lengthy documents, contractual documents, that require hours of painstaking review by lawyers on the part of multiple parties, and I am really appreciative to the advice that the minister and his team have been getting from the World Bank, because they are bringing to the forefront the best practices in the international arena on such arrangements. We are relying on their very good advice, when it comes to things like the overall plan for which the Council of Ministers gave their preliminary approval some weeks ago, and we're looking forward to continued progress on that. Also the tariff structures, and other arrangements to make sure that this sector, your electricity sector is going to be run as efficiently as possible so that the end users, your consumers, your Lebanese people, your hospitals, your other institutions can get the benefit of sustainable electricity. This is not an easy exercise, especially not right now, given all the other complications in the world and the disruptions to the world energy markets because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine–which is deplorable for other reasons. But I want to acknowledge the ongoing communications between the Minister and his counterparts, and the other stakeholders in these deals. They are ongoing and they are productive and positive, and we look forward to a successful outcome. Hang in there. We have not given up hope and you shouldn't either. Thank you.”
=================R.H.
