Lebanon’s Energy Reality: A Turning Point for Industry and Investment
By *Dalia Jubaili

Lebanon’s energy crisis is no longer only a technical or financial problem; it has become a human and economic crisis, one that directly affects living standards, productivity, competitiveness, and confidence in the future. When households cannot rely on electricity, when hospitals depend on generators, and when factories are forced to budget for diesel instead of investing in growth, energy ceases to be a utility issue. It becomes a national constraint. Electricity is not a luxury; it is the foundation of resilience, industrial growth, and economic continuity.

Lebanon’s long-standing dependence on diesel generation, initially perceived as a temporary workaround, has evolved into a structural weakness. Today, diesel-generated electricity costs businesses between 40 and 50 US cents per kWh, while commercial solar power can increasingly be delivered at 8 to 15 cents per kWh, depending on scale and financing. This gap is no longer about environmental preference; it is about economic reality. High energy costs create unpredictable operating expenses, weaken industrial competitiveness, erode investor confidence, expose businesses to import dependency and currency volatility, and ultimately slow growth and job creation.

This challenge is further intensified by regional competition. Lebanese manufacturers are not competing in an isolated environment; they operate in markets where energy costs are significantly lower. In countries such as Egypt and Jordan, electricity costs are around 10 cents per kWh, while in Turkey, they are often below Lebanon’s current levels. When local industrial companies pay several times more for electricity, the consequences are immediate: shrinking margins, declining exports, and investment shifting elsewhere. Energy cost has become one of the most defining factors of competitiveness.

At the same time, global energy economics have undergone a fundamental transformation. Solar power is now among the cheapest sources of new electricity, and battery storage costs continue to decline rapidly, making renewable systems more reliable and scalable. Lebanon, despite its challenges, holds clear structural advantages: strong solar resources, extensive industrial rooftops and usable land plots, a skilled engineering pool, and an entrepreneurial private sector. These assets create real potential for solar PV deployment, storage systems, industrial self-generation, shared microgrids, and even waste-to-energy and other localized solutions. This is not only an environmental opportunity, it is an industrial necessity.

What is required now is not further diagnosis but execution. Lebanon must urgently accelerate approvals for industrial solar and storage projects, modernize regulatory frameworks such as net billing and wheeling, and actively support industrial microgrids and private generation. Equally important is the need to redirect financial support away from fuel consumption toward long-term energy investment, restore access to productive financing through banks and leasing models, and strengthen partnerships between the private sector, government, and development institutions. These measures are not optional reforms; they are immediate economic priorities.

Ultimately, energy is not only about kilowatts. It is about a vital need: the ability of citizens and businesses to function without disruption. It is about productivity; the capacity to produce, compete, and grow. It is all about competitiveness; ensuring Lebanese industry can stand on equal foot with regional peers. And it is about trust; the belief that the future can be built, not endured. Every dollar spent on imported fuel leaves the Lebanese economy, while every megawatt produced locally strengthens resilience, reduces costs, and enhances energy security.

Lebanon still possesses what it needs to act: sunlight, talent, and a private sector capable of leading change. But the country can’t subsidize its way out of an imported fuel crisis. It must invest in this sector.

*Dalia Jubaili
Member of the Board of Directors at Jubaili Group Holding | Board Member at RDCL