People sitting and standing on rocks by the Beirut Corniche. (Credit: Stephanie Bechara)
-Algeria will supply fuel to Lebanon to operate the country’s power plants and ensure the supply of electricity, the Algerian state radio announced on Sunday, as reported by Reuters. It comes as Lebanon is currently experiencing a complete state-provided electricity blackout, after exhausting the fuel reserves allocated to the country’s power plants.
The last operational production unit at the Zahrani power plant in the south was shut down on Saturday. However, it was announced earlier in the morning on Sunday that the supply to this plant had been secured by nearby oil facilities, while the caretaker energy minister stated that it would be back in operation by midnight – but operating at a lower capacity.
-Residents of Beirut’s southern suburb have reportedly been facing exorbitant rent prices as they try to flee the capital – towards nearby mountains like Aley and its surroundings – in the aftermath of the Israeli strike that killed senior Hezbollah commander Fouad Shukur and several civilians on July 30. Some landlords have upped their rent by 2.5 times the initial price (from $600 pre-strike to $1,500 post-strike), and with some even asking for anything between $2,000 to $3,000 a month.
-The ADQ Sovereign Development Fund is reportedly in discussions with Bank Audi to acquire its Turkish subsidiary, Odea Bank, according to sources familiar with the matter, contacted by Bloomberg.
Odeabank is a medium-sized lender in Turkey with assets of 87.3 billion Turkish lira ($2.6 billion). Bank Audi, which established the company in 2012, is its largest shareholder with a 76.4 percent stake.
L’Orient Today was also unable to confirm reports from a source within the bank indicating that discussions on a potential acquisition of Odea Bank's assets by the fund, which manages over $200 million in assets, had been "suspended." Another source close to the matter stated that "negotiations are ongoing, although they are somewhat complicated," and added that ADQ is not the only potentially interested buyer.
-The prices of gasoline, diesel, and heating oil in Lebanon have slightly decreased, according to the prices published on Friday by the Energy Ministry. The price of domestic gas remained unchanged from the last list dated Tuesday.
Here are the latest rates:
Analysis of the week
Lebanese economic bodies and the association of banks have jointly opposed a new tax draft law, lobbying once again against several issues since the start of the crisis. Read Mounir Younes’ piece:
