Power policy

Lebanon’s power sector is dominated by fossil fuels and imports. In 2009, the government announced a target for 12% of primary energy consumption to come from renewables by 2020, and this ambition was adopted as a part of the country’s national strategy in 2010. An update in 2019 set a target for 30% of final energy consumption to come from renewables by 2030.

Lebanon’s National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP), which was released in 2016, provided a roadmap for how to achieve the 2020 and 2030 goals. However, the country largely missed its 2020 target as vested interests in the fossil fuel industry and financial crisis have made it difficult to make progress without foreign intervention. The next iteration of the NREAP has been delayed, but is set to be released in 2022 for the 2021-25 period.

Only one power purchase agreement (PPA) has been signed to date in Lebanon – a 20-year contract for the 226-megawatt (MW) Akkar Wind Farm. The auction for the farm was launched in 2013, but the PPA was only signed in 2018, and the project has yet to reach financial close or the start of construction.

There are three more renewable energy auctions pending at varying stages: four wind farms (each 50-100MW) totaling 260-520MW launched in 2018; 12 solar PV plants (each 10-15MW) totaling 120-180MW launched in 2017; and three solar PV-plus-storage plants (PV: 100MW each and storage: 70MWh each) totaling 300MW launched in 2018. There is an additional solar tender for 24 solar farms targeting 240-360MW that was supposed to be launched in late 2020, but economic crises have stalled progress in renewable energy auctions.

Power prices and costs

Lebanon’s national utility, Electricite du Liban (EDL), has a monopoly on transmission and distribution to end users but has not adjusted tariffs in several years.

Power market

EDL accounting for around 40% of the country’s national debt.

Doing business and barriers

Massive debt has handicapped EDL’s ability to make system improvements, and so consumers experience outages for as much as 17 hours each day. Because of this shortfall, private diesel generators often fill the generation gap and distributed solar has started booming in the country.

Lebanon’s government had intended to launch another auction for 24 solar farms in 2020, targeting 240-360MW of capacity, but the economic crisis has stalled all progress in the renewable energy auction arena. Stakeholders suggest that these auctions will likely not move forward without international intervention, such as from the International Monetary Fund.

EV market

Article 55 of Lebanon’s 2018 Budget Law set customs and excise taxes for private electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) at 0% and 20% of the vehicle price, respectively. For public passenger transport vehicles, the law set taxes at 0% for EVs and 10% for HEVs. Owners of EVs and HEVs were made exempt from registration fees and the annual road tax for the first year. The law was renewed in 2019 although it is unclear whether the support is still in place given Lebanon’s fiscal crises.

EV policy

Article 55 of Lebanon’s 2018 Budget Law set customs and excise taxes for private electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) at 0% and 20% of the vehicle price, respectively. For public passenger transport vehicles, the law set taxes at 0% for EVs and 10% for HEVs. Owners of EVs and HEVs were made exempt from registration fees and the annual road tax for the first year. The law was renewed in 2019 although it is unclear whether the support is still in place given Lebanon’s fiscal crises.

Buildings market

In 2016, the Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation (LCEC) published the country’s second National Energy Efficiency Action Plan (NEEAP) for the 2016-2020 period.

Buildings policy

The NEEAP sets initiatives for energy efficiency across the country’s economy, including buildings, industry and agriculture. While the plan outlines several initiatives across the buildings sector, including setting energy performance standards, minimal progress has been made. This follows the LCEC recording 0% completion for the buildings code initiative outlined in the 2011-15 NEEAP. The LCEC is in the process of updating the document for the 2021-25 period.