Qatar will finance and operate an electricity project to support and modernise the ailing Lebanese energy sector, Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Friday.
He made the comments during a visit to Beirut by the Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman. Lebanon's dire electricity situation was a key focus of talks among senior officials.
“Qatar will finance, implement and operate the electricity project, without the Lebanese Treasury bearing any prior investment cost,” Mr Salam said alongside Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Foreign Minister of the gas-rich Gulf state.
Sheikh Mohammed said QatarEnergy had reached an agreement with French company TotalEnergies to jointly develop a solar power plant in Lebanon as an initial project. The aim is to develop a major investment project “that would benefit the Lebanese economy, as well as the Qatari companies and entities participating in it”, he said.
While the use of solar panels in Lebanon has increased in recent years, the initial cost is prohibitive for most households.
Mr Salam said the project aimed to provide a more stable source of electricity at a lower cost. It would help in “rehabilitating, developing and modernising the electricity production infrastructure” in Lebanon, he said.
Lebanon is in a precarious financial situation, with its economy expected to contract by 6 to 7 per cent this year, leaving the government heavily reliant on outside support.
A report published by The National this week details how diesel-powered private generators were supplying around half of Lebanon's electricity production at the beginning of this year – a figure likely to have risen since then – but at a high cost to consumers.
“There's a serious will to arrange a solution for the electricity [situation] in Lebanon,” a Lebanese official told The National. Another said Qatar and Lebanon were in the “final stages” of finalising an agreement.
“Qatar will remain supportive of Lebanon and will seek to provide comprehensive solutions to the energy issue in the country,” Sheikh Mohammed said after meeting President Joseph Aoun and Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi at the presidential palace in Baabda.
He added that “the energy sector is at the heart of interests” and that “Qatar seeks to provide integrated solutions in this field”.
Sheikh Mohammed also met influential Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and army commander General Rodolphe Haykal.
Lebanon's dependence on expensive diesel imports to run private generators has pushed up already steep energy bills amid rising global oil prices due to the Iran war. This has added further strain on households and businesses still reeling from the 2019 economic crisis.
State utility Electricite du Liban is unable to provide more than a few hours of power a day.
The situation is so serious that Energy Minister Joe Saddi, who also met Sheikh Mohammed, has begun boycotting cabinet sessions in protest at what he sees as a lack of government support.
Lebanon's energy sector has suffered from a lack of investment that successive governments have failed to address.
The Gulf was once a major source of assistance to Lebanon, but pulled back in recent years over the perceived increase in influence of Iran-backed Hezbollah over Lebanese affairs.
Qatar in particular played a vital role in rebuilding Lebanon following the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. Such funding has been less forthcoming following the latest chapters of that conflict in 2024 and 2026.