Sadi's Efforts Bear Fruit as State Begins Paying Electricity Authority's Arrears

Minister of Energy and Water Jou Sadi is credited with success in compelling ministries, administrations, and public institutions to begin paying their arrears owed to the Lebanese Electricity Authority—a first-of-its-kind move after years of delay, according to sources.

Sadi sounded the electric alarm during a Council of Ministers meeting on 6/25/2026 due to the continued use of a fixed electricity tariff amid global oil price fluctuations, proposing instead a variable tariff tied to movements in the global derivatives market for petroleum products. However, the Council’s concern over disrupting the current tariff structure under prevailing conditions killed this proposal.

Sadi swiftly presented a temporary solution based on settling the arrears of public administrations and institutions amounting to $250 million USD from November 2022 to December 2025, to be paid in installments of $50 million monthly to carry through the summer season while awaiting clarity on Lebanon’s domestic and regional situation and global fuel prices.

Now, Sadi returns to the Council of Ministers in a session on 8/7/2026, presenting the progress made on the payment issue. While highlighting debts owed by the five largest defaulters, he revealed that some have already begun making payments.

He also announced that his collaboration with Finance Minister Yassine Jabar has led the Ministry of Finance to contribute financially to support certain institutions in settling their dues through the preparation of a decree transferring funds from the reserve to the budgets of these institutions.

Noting that some hospitals may lack the capacity to pay their obligations to the Electricity Authority, Sadi called on the Minister of Health to provide contributions to those hospitals unable to pay, emphasizing that the Ministry of Health already holds allocated funds in its budget for such purposes.

Sadi requested that the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance settle the exemptions granted to the South, which have cost the Electricity Authority nearly $68 million—either by paying from the Southern Fund or by submitting a bill to Parliament to cover these costs, as previously done with a bill for southern exemptions.

With transparency and based on scientific data, Sadi responsibly presented the current reality of Lebanon’s electricity sector to prompt necessary and urgent measures to prevent a total blackout.

Will the government, its institutions, and administration respond? Will they assume their responsibilities and expand the scope of payments to carry through this phase? Remember: what is required is settlement of outstanding dues—not financial support or treasury advances! Tomorrow is closer than you think.