Arab states to send gas to Lebanon
Ministers from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria agreed to facilitate Egyptian natural gas deliveries to Lebanon, Jordan’s official news agency Petra reported September 8.
The agency said Jordanian energy minister Hala Zawati hosted her counterparts to discuss sending Egyptian gas to Lebanon by way of deliveries through Jordan and Syria.
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All parties to the ministerial meeting are Arab Gas Pipeline countries. The 1,200-km pipeline runs from Egypt, around Israel, north to Jordan and Syria. A lateral extends from Syria to the Lebanese coastal city of Tripoli.
Jordan’s energy minister said the meeting was held in part to emphasise that cooperation between Arab neighbours in the region could help alleviate the lingering energy woes in Lebanon.
"Under the directives of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad to help Lebanese people overcome the difficulties they are facing in the field of energy, we will exert every possible effort for the success of the transport of Egyptian gas or Jordanian electricity to Lebanon for the good and interest of our brotherly Arab countries," said Syrian energy minister Bassam Tohme.
The Hezbollah group in Lebanon has said it would help facilitate fuel shipments from Iran to Lebanon to help address shortfalls.
Lebanon has been in a state of political crisis at least since a major blast at the port of Beirut left more than 200 people dead in August 2020. In a country with aging energy infrastructure, the crisis has only compounded the energy woes.