Report: General Electric Apologizes over Electricity Proposal Misunderstanding
An official at General Electric denied that it has made an offer to construct a power plant in Lebanon after the American company offered apologies to Premier Najib Miqati and Energy Minister Jebran Bassil about the misunderstanding, As Safir daily reported Saturday.
It quoted the official as saying that the firm has never made an official offer. The newspaper also said that several GE officials apologized to Miqati and Bassil after a staff member in the region made the offer illegally.
The officials stressed that they have relieved the employee of his duties.
Media reports had said that Miqati was advocating a proposal by GE to construct a power plant at the cost of $500 million.
But the controversy was resolved after the cabinet approved on Wednesday a proposal made by Bassil to lease power-generating vessels for a maximum of three years to produce 270 megawatts and to construct power plants of 1,500-megawatt capacity as advocated by the prime minister.
The ministerial committee tasked with following up the leasing of the vessels is set to resume its meetings on Monday to negotiate prices and conditions for contracts to be offered to the companies that will provide the vessels.
Finance Minister Mohammed al-Safadi, who is a member of the committee, told An Nahar newspaper that he proposed to Miqati and Bassil during a meeting they held on Thursday to set the price of the leasing ahead of the negotiations.
An Nahar said that both the premier and the energy minister are working to come up with studies on the issue.
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