BEIRUT: Lebanon took its first serious step to reduce dependence on expensive forms of energy Thursday by signing an agreement with a leading French company to implement a windmill project. Energy and Water Minister Mohammad Fneish signed the pact with Paris-based Global Wind Energy in the presence of the United Nations Development Program's resident representative, Mona Hammam, and officials from the ministry and Electricite du Liban (EDL).

"We are pinning high hopes on energy rationing and today we are signing this important agreement that will pave the way for the introduction of the first windmill project in Lebanon," Fneish told reporters.

He said the agreement is part of the ministry's plan for alternative energy, especially in light of higher oil prices.

According to the contact, the project will be executed over the next seven months and an international tender will be issued soon to attract investors.

The minister stressed that the Parliament made the necessary amendments to Law 462, which will authorize the Cabinet - rather than EDL - to issue the required permits for windmill projects.
 

He added that the ministry selected the French company because it made the best offer and has wide experience in the field of wind energy.

Like old-fashioned windmills, today's machines use blades to collect the wind's kinetic energy. The blades are connected to a drive shaft. which rotates along with the blades and drives an electric generator to produce electricity.

The government has been pressing the Energy Ministry to find radical solutions for EDL's woes because it has been draining the resources of the Treasury for years.

The Finance Ministry allocated $800 million in 2005 to subsidize the losses of EDL.

Privatization of electricity production and distribution are among the choices the government is considering in its reform program.

Fneish added that the smuggling of fuel oil from Syria to Lebanon is the responsibility of the Lebanese government: "Syrian fuel oil is subsidized by the government and for this reason many Lebanese buy this oil because it is much cheaper than the ones sold here."

The Daily Star, November 03, 2006