The Minister of Energy and Water, Joe Saddi, signing agreements with Joe Dakkak, General Manager of the CMA CGM group in Lebanon and the Levant region, on September 23, 2025. Photo provided by the group.
BEIRUT — On Wednesday, Energy and Water Ministry Joe Saddi signed power purchase agreements (PPA) with French shipping giant CMA CGM, whose sister company Merit Invest previously acquired three licenses to build solar farms in Lebanon, the group announced in a press release.
In May 2022, the Cabinet granted 11 licenses to produce electricity from solar energy, each with a production capacity of 15 megawatts and an operational period of 25 years. Merit Invest secured those licenses in 2024.
Upon taking office, Saddi said he had discovered that most licenses had been left dormant and subsequently gave all license holders until Dec. 31, 2025, to meet the necessary conditions to begin developing solar fields.
Power for 22,000 households
Each of these solar farms will have a capacity of 15 megawatts, for a combined total of 45 megawatts, and will be connected to the national grid managed by the Électricité du Liban (EDL).
Joe Dakkak, General Manager of CMA CGM Group in Lebanon and the Levant region, said that the creation of the three solar power plants — in the North, Mount Lebanon and the Bekaa — falls under the group’s target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
The plants are meant to generate “enough to supply over 22,000 homes, while cutting more than 45,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually,” Dakkak added.
“This step not only increases the amount of power produced, but also lowers costs, since the fixed price is 5.7 cents per kilowatt-hour in the Bekaa and 6.27 cents per kilowatt-hour in the North and Mount Lebanon — far below the average production cost of EDL,” Saddi said.
CMA CGM noted that the project in North Lebanon is the most advanced: “The land has been secured, and we are working on selecting the contractor,” Dakkak explained.
“For all three projects, we confirm that we are working efficiently to meet all the prerequisites under the PPAs, with the goal of beginning construction as soon as possible.”
“This project is not only about producing cleaner electricity. It will also have a positive impact on Lebanon and its people ... It will also serve as an important platform for education, research, and innovation in renewable energy,” Dakkak concluded.
