Speculation Arises on whether GE Made Proposal to Construct Power Plant in Lebanon
Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s sources questioned reports that the General Electric company had made a proposal over constructing a power plant in Lebanon, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.
They told the daily that the premier’s suggestion to build a plant to resolve the country’s power crisis did not include the name of a specific company.
“The American company has not made an official proposal, but simply suggestions presented by some of its representatives,” it added.
They said that there is a possibility that the plant could be constructed within a period of 14 months, stated the sources.
They added that a ministerial meeting headed by Miqati on Monday should remove all speculation over this issue.
Meanwhile, Minister of Economy Nicolas Nahhas refuted these claims, saying that General Electric had indeed made a proposal to the Lebanese government, reported the Kuwaiti al-Seyassah newspaper on Sunday.
He explained: “Powerful companies such as General Electric make their proposals through their own sources and not through written documents.
“Any allegations that the company had not made the proposal are aimed at creating political debates,” said the minister.
A committee charged with studying the electrify file is scheduled to convene on Monday, headed by Miqati.
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 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.
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