A deal was signed between Iraq and Lebanon today, where Iraq will supply Lebanon with one million tonnes of fuel oil in exchange for medical services. The Iraqi fuel however cannot be used by Lebanon's power stations, and will be used to buy compatible fuel from other providers. Why are we buying incompatible fuel? Because we don't have dollars to buy from providers and Iraq has agreed to receive medical services instead of money. Nevertheless,…

Lebanon's leading supermarkets are running short on diesel and might be forced to temporarily close until the authorities figure out a way to procure diesel. Ironically, the problem is not a market shortage but suppliers and distributors refusing to buy "legally" and trying to get the most out of the situation in the black market. Meanwhile, the authorities aren't doing sh*t to resolve this matter since many parties are benefitting from the black market sales…

Check out this lengthy BBC News Arabic report on Lebanon's electricity sector where they investigate "allegations involving multi-million dollar agreements, bribery, and shipments of substandard oil imported to fuel Lebanon's power stations, and reports on the biggest corruption investigation in the history of the country's energy sector." Add to that the environmental and health hazards that Lebanon's outdated power stations pose to people living close to them.