Finance Minister Releases Funds to Buy Fuel Oil to Maintain Electric Power

Although great privatization is great in theory, in practice, especially in middle-income countries, it has often proven to be inefficient and counter-productive.

A very solid regulatory framework needs to be set up, with a respectable judiciary to enforce the decisions. Unfortunately in Lebanon, we lack both conditions. As such, privatization will not lead to the benefits you expect.

Also, in its current state, the Lebanese taxpayer (if there exists one) won't make money off the privatization, as EDL is valueless, despite the fact it has a natural monopoly over the country's electricity production and distribution.

Personally, I'd rather the government keeps control of it until we have a situation stable enough to sell it. However, the telecom network is ready to be privatized (pending the regulatory framework of course).

You're spot on GP. Would you believe that there are quite a good number of people who still go to EDL everyday to punch their late father's attendance card everyday, even fake a few overtimes, then at the end of the day cash their paychecks? Imagine, dead people still cashing their paychecks? The we have the Mazout Mafia, the Moteur Mafia, the Municipality Mafia, (have you noticed all are MM's?). A lot of the blackouts are staged to give everyone their cut of the pie. Whenever I get visitors from the West, one of the first things that strikes them, is the number of opulent cars on our roads, little do they know that we have the highest per capita crooks in the world, EDL one of them.

One of them is a barber, like the rest of the dead people still working for EDL, he goes early to punch his old man's card, then goes to open his barber shop, fakes a few overtimes a month, goes back at close of day to punch again, reopen his shop, and this for years and years. Then we have those crooks who are stealing form the copper cables orders, most of which are fake orders, same with spare parts, mostly used, and the oil, and those who have to keep servicing this cracking old system. When Demianos Katter was minister under Miqati's first interim government in 2005, he was proposing that we scrap altogether these old plants and just buy direct from Turkey which meant power 24/7 with a saving of approx 60%, the elimination of all the thefts, pollution, mazout, etc..., yet till now, is anyone listening to the professionals?

Ali Hassan Khalil, should better be called SOB, guys, no insults meant, wait, here's why. SOB stands for, Son Of Berri.

Who would be interrested to invest in EDL when their bills collectors cannot enter Dahie, or get beat up in the Hezbollas strongholds in the Bekka valley and in the south....