No electricity in Lebanon amid fuel shortage, outage to continue for few days

The entire country of Lebanon is now left only with personal generators after the grid shutdown on Saturday/Picture courtesy: Getty images/BBC

In a major power crisis unfolding in Lebanon, the country has no centrally generated electricity after its two biggest power stations shut down due to a fuel shortage, a government official told Reuters on Saturday. The power outage is expected to continue for a few days or at least till next Monday, the official further told the news agency.

According to the report, the country has plunged into "complete darkness."

A government official told Reuters news agency the country's two largest power stations, Deir Ammar and Zahrani, had shut down because of a fuel shortage.

The official further stated that the Lebanese government has plans to use the army's fuel oil reserve to operate the power plants temporarily but, he added, that would not happen anytime soon.

Many Lebanese normally rely on private generators run on diesel, although that is in short supply.

For the past 18 months, Lebanon has endured a severe economic crisis which has got worse amid fuel shortages.

That crisis has left half its population in poverty, crippled its currency and sparked major demonstrations against politicians. The Lebanese currency has sunk by 90% since 2019.