According to Jihad Azour, the problem is that EDL is forced, due to contracts signed with foreign companies, to import a fix quantity of fuel even though it overruns its production capacity. As for EDL, it shows that 2.200 megawatts are necessary to cover the needs of Lebanon, while the maximum production capacity reaches now up to 1.700 MW, with 100 MW coming from Syria. “EDL is sometimes forced to stop some production units due the lack of maintenance”, he added. Another brain teaser: the implemented price list is largely inferior to the cost of production. One kilowatt costs 400 Lebanese Pounds for the State, while the consumer pays an average of almost 100 Lebanese Pounds.

The frauds are the most blazing weaknesses. In some regions, people benefit from the “protection” of the parties or political figures to run away from bills or “steal” electricity from the State in the open. People think about the Southern suburb of Beirut, which is controlled by Hezbollah, but this also happens in many other areas of the country. EDL mentions that “the fraud has increased during the last two years because of the instability in the country, to reach 20% of the production in 2007”. Moreover, according to EDL, the collectors are attacked during their functioning. The Israeli raids in 2006 also ruined the electrical installations, and the damages estimated by EDL reached 53, 5 million dollars. While the hydroelectric potential is almost untapped, the State expects investments of around 200 million dollars to increase the production capacity. Moreover, it is preparing for the privatization of EDL. However, Mr. Azour assures that “whatever the injected money”, this sector needs a solid restructuring.