This archive report was first published on 13 October 2021.
Published on October 13, 2021, Lebanon is facing one of the worst economic crises since the 1850s, with severe fuel shortages crippling its power plants.
State electricity is barely available for an hour a day, and the fuel needed to power private back-up generators is also in short supply.
Electricite du Liban (EDL) reported a complete collapse of the national electricity network, citing the depletion of gasoil reserves at the Deir Ammar and Zahrani power stations.
This is the second such outage reported by EDL since the start of the month, following a similar incident last Saturday.
Lebanon's new government, formed last month after 13 months of political wrangling, is struggling to restore electricity to the country.
Several measures have been launched to address the crisis, including an agreement to bring in Jordanian electricity and Egyptian gas via war-torn Syria, as well as hydrocarbon deliveries from Iran by Hezbollah.
The state is also exchanging fuel oil for medical services with Iraq under a swap deal.
The international community has long demanded a complete overhaul of Lebanon's loss-making electricity sector, which has cost the government over $40 billion since the end of the 1975-1990 civil war.
