The media office of the Lebanese Minister of Energy and Water in the caretaker government, Walid Fayad, reiterated its stance to the Lebanese people in response to certain media outlets known for their affiliations and biases. The minister remains committed to the fuel ship that ensures an increase in electricity supply until the last moment, and he is prepared to hold a new tender yesterday before today, and today before tomorrow, to procure a new ship that ensures sustainability and an increase in electricity supply for citizens as part of the national emergency plan.
He indicated that the return of the ship was at the request of the committee chairman, or the Prime Minister, during a phone call on August 30, in which he confirmed the inability to open a bank credit in US dollars to cover the cost of the fuel shipment needed for power plants, neither today nor tomorrow. Subsequently, Minister Fayad corresponded with the committee and secured the cancellation of the purchase contract with Coral Energy DMCC without incurring any costs on the state, and the ship was returned. He noted that had the purchase proceeded, it would have resulted in savings of approximately two million dollars from the two shipments due to price differences.
Fayad emphasized that "any other statement is completely untrue," pointing out that the tender was conducted in accordance with public procurement law and the highest standards of transparency. He mentioned that Minister Fayad informed all concerned parties, as well as the public, about all correspondences and documents related to this file, stating: "As for the report, we only learned about it through the media. If it exists, it certainly came after the return of the ship and at the direction of the Prime Minister."
