Another total blackout in Lebanon.

The country plunged into darkness on Saturday after the shutdown of the activity of two major power plants for lack of fuel, announced the national company Electricité du Liban (EDL).

Stuck in an unprecedented crisis, described by the World Bank as one of the worst in the history of the world since 1850, the country has been experiencing draconian power rationing for months, peaking at more than 22 hours a day, and struggling to import electricity. fuel, against the backdrop of a historic collapse of the national currency and a drying up of foreign currencies.

"Total collapse" of the network

These cuts paralyze the life of the population and several vital sectors, while the managers of private generators, who generally take over, also ration shops, hospitals and homes, as fuel becomes scarce. “After the Deir Ammar plant was forced to stop its electricity production yesterday morning due to the exhaustion of its diesel reserves, the Zahrani plant also shut down this afternoon for the same reason ", The EDL said in a statement.

This led to a "total collapse of the network without any possibility of restoring it for the moment", adds the press release, while the other power stations of the country are operating at a minimum.

This is the second total blackout reported by EDL since the beginning of the month.

For the first, the network was reestablished a few days later.

Arrived from an oil tanker in the evening

A source at the Ministry of Energy told AFP that efforts were being made "to find a solution to the problem".

In its statement, the EDL said an oil tanker was to arrive on Saturday evening and be unloaded early next week.

The international community is calling for urgent reforms from the Lebanese authorities, in particular for the EDL, a symbol of bad governance and the decay of public services in Lebanon.

Formed in September after 13 months of political wrangling, the new government is committed to initiating reforms in the electricity sector and gradually restoring public power.

Lebanon is negotiating with Egypt and Jordan for the delivery of gas and electricity via Syria, while the Shiite movement Hezbollah has announced in recent weeks several deliveries of Iranian fuel to alleviate serious shortages of power and fuel.

An agreement was also reached between the authorities and Iraq for the distribution of Iraqi oil to Lebanon in return for medical services.

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