The Tripoli oil installations. (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — Lebanon's Energy Ministry announced on Saturday that unloading of a delivery of donated Algerian fuel oil has been delayed until Monday, the state-run National News Agency reported.
The ministry indicated that all logistical and technical preparations at the oil facilities in Tripoli have been completed ahead of the unloading.
On Tuesday, caretaker Energy Minister Walid Fayad said that the 30,000 metric tons of fuel oil, donated by Algeria, would be "unloaded at Tripoli's facilities and supplied in the coming days after conditions allow it."
However, high seas have delayed the unloading of the fuel shipment, which is now scheduled to begin on Monday at 2 p.m, following the tanker’s entry to the facility at 10 a.m., according to the ministry's statement. The unloading process is expected to continue for 48 hours.
The Energy Ministry also expressed its gratitude to Algeria for its donation of high-quality fuel oil, aimed at addressing Lebanon's urgent energy needs.
The ministry emphasized its ongoing communication with the Algerian Ministry of Energy and Mines to ensure the interests of both nations are protected and to foster strong bilateral relations.
The Algerian ship, In Ecker, which is carrying the 30,000 metric tons of fuel oil, arrived in Tripoli on Tuesday and anchored off the coast near the city's oil facilities.
Earlier this month, Lebanon experienced a total state-provided electricity blackout, after exhausting the fuel reserves allocated to the country’s power plants. Until this most recent blackout, the state was providing around four to six hours of electricity daily.
Also on Tuesday, Fayad announced that the oil tanker Chem Helen, a tanker carrying 30,000 tons of Egyptian fuel, arrived at the Zahrani terminal and started discharging its cargo — allowing the electricity supply to increase by four to six hours daily.