Following a fuel delivery delay, EDL to reduce its output

Electricité du Liban (EDL) announced in a statement on Thursday that it had been forced to cut power production and distribution since the previous day due to the delayed arrival of a tanker carrying fuel for its power stations.

“A shipment of gasoil was scheduled to be delivered to EDL by the Ministry of Energy and Water — Directorate General of Petroleum, between Dec. 5 and 8. According to the latest information available, the delivery of this shipment has been delayed. It is now expected to arrive in Lebanese territorial waters at noon on Dec. 12, 2025,” wrote the management of the public electricity provider.

It added that the tanks at the Deir Ammar plant (North Lebanon) and Zahrani (South Lebanon) were “almost empty,” which had forced it to shut down a production unit at the Zahrani power plant and to keep only one “gas turbine” (which uses gasoil) in operation and “half a steam unit” (which uses fuel oil) at Deir Ammar.

These “preventive measures” will “extend the production period as long as possible and maintain power supply to the country's vital infrastructure,” including the port, the airport and the water authorities' facilities.

EDL says it will restore production to its pre-Wednesday level as soon as the unloading is completed, which should in principle take a few days, as the fuel is generally tested upon the ship's arrival.

EDL did not specify the reasons for the delay, but could well be related to weather conditions, as the eastern Mediterranean basin has been hit by Storm Byron in recent days.

EDL also did not indicate how many hours of electricity it would be able to provide per day as a result. Its current capacities allow far below a 24/7 supply, with typical average daily provision ranging between 4 to 6 hours.

The provider operates almost in just-in-time mode, and each fuel delivery delay forces its teams to reduce production, sometimes drastically.