After Nasrallah's remarks, Fayyad says any fuel grant needs cabinet decree

Caretaker Energy Minister Walid Fayyad on Tuesday said his ministry welcomes “any grant from any friendly country in the world,” hours after Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said he is willing to secure free fuel from Iran for Lebanon’s power plants.

“In this regard, we have prepared the specifications of the fuel needed for power plants,” Fayyad said.

Commenting on Nasrallah’s remarks, the minister said “the power plants need every liter of fuel.”

“Everyone knows this, especially with the high temperatures in summer and the additional pressure from tourists, expats and refugees,” Fayyad added.

He, however, noted that “Article 52 of the public auditing law stipulates the norms for accepting grants.”

“This happens under a decree taken in Cabinet and not at the Ministry of Energy and Water,” he pointed out.

Nasrallah announced Monday that he is “ready to bring free Iranian fuel for the Lebanese power plants if the Lebanese government agrees to this.”

“But unfortunately there is no political courage in Lebanon for such a step, because they fear U.S. sanctions on individuals and their families,” Nasrallah added.

His announcement came in response to a statement by Free Patriotic Movement chief Jebran Bassil, who on Friday called on him and on the energy ministry to “request free Iranian fuel.”

“We would have 10 hours of electricity as of tomorrow,” Bassil added.