Qatar pitches two power plants, LNG, and renewables to fix Lebanon’s grid

Qatar is offering to rebuild Lebanon’s crumbling electricity supply system over three years, pitching a buildout led by two combined-cycle generation plants with 825 MW capacity each in Deir ​Ammar in the north and ​at Zahrani in the south, according to a draft plan seen by Reuters and prepared with input from both governments. Under the plan, Qatar will also provide LNG to Lebanon for the next two decades, build renewables projects backed by battery storage with a combined capacity of 1.2 GW, and supply 400 MW of electricity via Syria — bringing the plan’s combined generation capacity to over 3.2 GW. The catch is that Lebanon is still working on the infrastructure that could enable LNG-powered electricity generation at that scale. The plan would require Lebanon to charter a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) to handle about 3.5 mn cbm per day — and the government recently approved a PPP plan for an FSRU project near Deir Ammar. Ramping up the ongoing rehabilitation of the Arab Gas Pipeline, which passes through Syria and Jordan, will also be needed to allow imports of up to 4.5 mn cbm per day. REMEMBER- Lebanon was supposed to build these two combined-cycle plants almost a decade ago — and the delay recently prompted a corruption probe after rented Turkish floating electricity generation units continued to rack up expensive fees, we reported in the summer.

Plugging in Cyprus

Eni and TotalEnergies are budgeting USD 100-120 mn to link Cypriot gas to Egypt’s Damietta LNG plant. The roughly 40 km onshore pipeline will run from the Zohr gas processing facilities in Port Said to Damietta, completing the Egyptian leg of the export route for Cyprus’ offshore Cronos field, Asharq Business reports, citing an unnamed government official. Construction is set to start in early 2027 and is expected to take about 12 months from the signing of execution contracts, which puts the first Cronos gas in Egypt in 1Q 2028, starting at about 500 mmscf / d.

The pipeline puts Egypt’s idle gas capacity to work: Cronos gas will travel by subsea pipeline to Zohr’s existing facilities for processing, then overland to Damietta for liquefaction and re-export to Europe. Egypt has more than 2 bcf / d of spare processing capacity on the Mediterranean coast and 1.9 bcf / d of export capacity at Idku and Damietta, within a network that can carry around 9 bcf / d. Cairo expects about 1.3 bcf / d of Cypriot gas from Cronos and Aphrodite by end-2028, according to the official.

Paid in barrels

China’s Anton Oilfield Services has sold its first cargo of Iraqi crude as part of an arrangement to settle delayed payments with Iraqi state oil company Somo, Reuters reports. The Hong Kong-listed company lifted around 1 mn bbl of Basrah Heavy grade from Majnoon in September and sold the cargo to an unnamed oil trading company. Anton said the proceeds from the sale will be used to settle arrears owed to itself and partners.

The context is a cash crunch at the Basra Oil Company (BOC) that has led to accruing arrears. Iraq has been one of the most impacted oil exporters in the region on Hormuz disruptions, and the country has been using big discounts to incentivize traders to continue buying through the crisis. Somo widened its Basrah Heavy term discount to USD 37 per barrel for October loading, from under USD 30 for August and September, as Hormuz-related freight and ins. costs blew out.

The rebuild fund

Syria and the World Bank Group have agreed to set up a multi-donor trust fund for reconstruction, the Syria Recovery and Reconstruction Trust Fund (START), SANA reports. The fund will channel concessional financing, investment guarantees, technical assistance and capacity building, with the World Bank administering it against priorities Damascus sets, and the IFC working alongside it to draw in private investment.

Partners from the Arab region, the EU, the US and regional and international financial institutions said they are willing to contribute, at a roundtable on the sidelines of the World Bank and IMF annual meetings in Bangkok. No target size or individual contributions have been disclosed.

Credit where due

Syria has received its first fuel cargo from Saudi Aramco, paid for with its first letter of credit in 14 years. The tanker Starling began unloading about 63.8k metric tons of diesel at the Baniyas oil terminal on Monday, Syrian Petroleum Company (SPC) head of mooring and berthing Jamil Wahoud told state news agency Sana. The trial shipment is intended to help cover Syria’s domestic fuel needs.

Syria now has a formal banking channel for fuel imports. Syria’s central bank opened the letter of credit earlier this month with an unnamed major US bank, and SPC identified Aramco Trading as the supplier. The arrangement opens the way to wider cooperation, Wahoud said. Sana’s reports don’t give the agreement’s value, total volumes, or delivery schedule.

REMEMBER- Saudi oil has reached Syria before, as aid. Riyadh completed a 1.65 mn-barrel crude oil grant last November, with the final 1 mn barrels delivered to Baniyas aboard the Reliable Warrior.