Ogero's head office in the southern suburbs of Beirut. (Credit: Philippe Hage Boutros/ File photo/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — Lebanon's public fixed-line and internet operator Ogero received $13.25 million on Friday, transferred by the Banque du Liban (BDL) at the request of the Ministry of Finance.
This information was confirmed to L'Orient-Le Jour by both a ministry spokeswoman and caretaker Minister of Telecoms Johnny Corm.
The funds are intended to finance the organization's needs in terms of fuel oil purchases and maintenance work, at a time when serial breakdowns have been reported across the country.
The transfer came after a tug-of-war between the ministries of telecoms and finance. According to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance, the ministry sent the payment on May 2, but the Minister of Telecoms didn't take the necessary steps to release the funds from BDL.
In a statement to L'Orient-Le Jour, Corm cleared himself of any responsibility for the delay, citing legal complications arising from a 2019 law.
L'Orient-Le Jour tried to contact an Ogero spokesperson, but he could not be immediately reached for comment.
Ogero's funding problem was addressed at the end of May when the organization's general manager said 30 stations were at risk of shutting down due to a lack of diesel to power the infrastructure. Since then, many transmission stations have ceased operating.