Lebanon’s caretaker Energy Minister, Nada Boustani, postponed a tender to buy fuel for a week on Monday to allow “more competition and better prices” after receiving offers from two companies.
Boustani launched a state tender offer on November 15 for the import of 150,000 tons of gasoline, saying that she was attempting to avoid fuel shortages and ensure prices do not rise for Lebanese consumers amid a monetary and economic crisis. The ministry aims to supply 10 percent of the country’s needs.
In a news conference on Monday, the energy minster announced extending by a week the deadline to submit the tenders, after only two companies submitted bids.
“Legally, we can proceed with the two offers, but we received requests to delay [the evaluation of bids],” she noted, adding that it was better to “give more time to more offers and competition for the benefit of the state and the citizens.”
“Twelve companies compete as private sector entities to import gasoline, but after the recent crisis… we decided to import gasoline directly through the state, especially since the latter has an experience in importing 30 percent of the fuel oil to the Lebanese market,” Boustani explained.
Gas stations decided to suspend an open-ended strike on Friday to allow for talks with the concerned authorities, amid complaints of financial losses due to the fall of the Lebanese pound rates against the American dollar in parallel markets and constraints imposed by banks on USD withdrawals.
The pound has fallen as much as 40 percent below the official dollar peg rate in recent days in the parallel market. As a result of the shortage of hard currency, importers were unable to purchase goods, leading to higher prices.
