Qatar announces ‘massive’ solar plant project in Lebanon

Sheikh Mohammed also discussed Israeli ‘violations’ in Lebanese territory with Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.

Lebanon's prime minister welcomed Qatar's PM in Beirut on Friday [Hassan Ammar/AP]

Qatar’s prime minister has announced plans to set up what he described as a “massive” solar plant in Lebanon to help ease its energy crisis .

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani made the announcement during his visit to Beirut on Friday, after meeting his Lebanese counterpart, Nawaf Salam.

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“We have agreed to establish a comprehensive framework for cooperation in the energy sector and to present viable solutions,” Sheikh Mohammed said.

QatarEnergy has reached an agreement with French company TotalEnergies to jointly develop a solar power plant in Lebanon as an initial project.

The aim is to develop a major investment project “that would benefit the Lebanese economy, as well as the Qatari companies and entities participating in it”, he added.

Prime Minister Salam said he would put the plans for Lebanon’s electricity sector to the Lebanese Cabinet soon.

“The Qatari side will fund, implement and activate the project without any cost on the Lebanese state,” Lebanon’s leader said, adding that such a move is important because of the country’s financial crisis.

Lebanon’s state electricity company is one of the biggest sources of debt, haemorrhaging about $40bn over past decades with a bloated workforce and outdated infrastructure. The company provides only a few hours of electricity a day and the state, until a year ago, took advances from the Central Bank when diesel fuel ran out.

Sheikh Mohammed said Doha stands in “solidarity with the Lebanese people” and the entire region “in this dire hour”. Lebanon has been struggling with multiple energy crises in recent years and the situation has been compounded by the country’s financial collapse and Israel’s ongoing assault .

Earlier in the day, the Qatari PM also met Lebanon’s president and parliament speaker.

Among the topics discussed was the situation in southern Lebanon, where Israel continues its assault, capturing dozens of towns and villages.

Sheikh Mohammed said “Israeli violations within the Lebanese territories” were a large part of his talks.

He said that Israel should withdraw from Lebanon and cease its attacks, adding that Qatar is working in coordination with the United States to help lay the groundwork for future reconstruction in southern Lebanon to allow displaced people to return to their homes.

Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon have continued despite a ceasefire agreed in June. Under the agreement brokered by the US, the Lebanese government is to disarm Iran-backed Hezbollah. In return, Israeli forces will gradually withdraw from southern areas that they occupy. However, Hezbollah is not part of the agreement and has refused to disarm until Israel withdraws from the country.

Lebanese authorities say Israeli attacks have killed more than 4,300 people in the country since March. About 1.2 million people were also displaced in Lebanon at the height of the war.

Although most have returned home since the June ceasefire, more than 300,000 people remain displaced, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Lebanon’s PM Salam thanked Qatar for its “continuous” support during some of Lebanon’s “darkest hours”.

谢赫·穆罕默德还与总理纳瓦夫·萨拉姆讨论了以色列在黎巴嫩领土上的“侵犯”行为。

黎巴嫩总理周五在贝鲁特欢迎卡塔尔首相。[哈桑·阿马尔/美联社]

卡塔尔首相宣布计划在黎巴嫩建立一座他称之为“大型”的太阳能发电厂，以帮助缓解该国的能源危机。

谢赫·穆罕默德·本·阿卜杜勒拉赫曼·本·贾西姆·阿勒萨尼在周五访问贝鲁特期间，会见了黎巴嫩酋长纳瓦夫·萨拉姆后，宣布了这一消息。

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“我们已同意建立一个全面的能源领域合作框架，并提出切实可行的解决方案，”谢赫·穆罕默德说。

卡塔尔能源公司与法国道达尔能源公司达成协议，将共同在黎巴嫩开发一座太阳能发电厂，作为首个项目。

他补充说，目标是开发一个大型投资项目，“这将有利于黎巴嫩经济，以及参与其中的卡塔尔公司和实体”。

萨拉姆总理表示，他将很快把黎巴嫩电力行业的计划提交黎巴嫩内阁审议。

黎巴嫩领导人表示：“卡塔尔方面将出资、实施和启动该项目，黎巴嫩国家无需承担任何费用。”他还补充说，鉴于黎巴嫩的金融危机，此举意义重大。

黎巴嫩国家电力公司是该国最大的债务来源之一，过去几十年间，由于员工臃肿、基础设施陈旧，该公司已累计负债约400亿美元。该公司每天仅供电数小时，而且直到一年前，当柴油燃料短缺时，黎巴嫩政府还不得不向中央银行贷款。

穆罕默德酋长表示，多哈“与黎巴嫩人民”以及整个地区“在这一危难时刻”站在一起。近年来，黎巴嫩一直饱受多重能源危机的困扰，而该国的金融崩溃和以色列持续不断的侵略更是雪上加霜。

当天早些时候，卡塔尔首相还会见了黎巴嫩总统和议长。

讨论的话题之一是黎巴嫩南部局势，以色列继续对该地区发动进攻，占领了数十个城镇和村庄。

谢赫·穆罕默德表示，“以色列在黎巴嫩领土内的侵犯行为”是他此次会谈的重要组成部分。

他表示，以色列应该从黎巴嫩撤军并停止袭击，并补充说，卡塔尔正在与美国协调合作，帮助为黎巴嫩南部未来的重建奠定基础，使流离失所者能够返回家园。

尽管6月份达成了停火协议，以色列对黎巴嫩南部的袭击仍在继续。根据美国斡旋达成的协议，黎巴嫩政府应解除伊朗支持的真主党武装。作为交换，以色列军队将逐步从其占领的南部地区撤出。然而，真主党并未参与该协议，并拒绝在以色列撤军之前解除武装。

黎巴嫩当局称，自3月以来，以色列的袭击已在该国造成超过4300人死亡。战争高峰期，约有120万人流离失所。

据国际移民组织称，虽然自 6 月份停火以来，大多数人已经返回家园，但仍有超过 30 万人流离失所。

黎巴嫩总理萨拉姆感谢卡塔尔在黎巴嫩“最黑暗的时期”给予的“持续”支持。