LIMS organized 2 townhall meetings in north Lebanon, on January 23 in Tripoli and on January 31 at Notre Dame University-Louaize (NDU) in Koura. Around 100 attendees, including 5 members of parliament, 3 representatives of members of parliament, municipal council members, business owners, engineers, along with university professors and students, came to each meeting. 

Lebanon has been stuck in an electricity crisis for at least three decades, with the government leaving the issue unresolved. Dr. Patrick Mardini, CEO of LIMS, illustrated how mismanaged the electricity sector has been, and then presented Toula’s pilot project. Toula’s project highlights the ability of municipalities to immediately provide 24/7 electricity to their households as follows: (1) private investors provide the initial investment in solar to municipalities—around $6,000 per household in the case of Toula. (2) the solar farm supplies electricity to the private generator using a power purchase agreement directly negotiated between the two private entities. (3) The private generator complements the purchased solar energy with their generator and then sells the bundle to households through their already established microgrid and distribution system.

Mr. Elie Greige, the engineer overseeing this pilot project, described the solar farm’s stages of development. When there was a dire fuel shortage in the country, this initiative was launched. He explained that the municipality leaders, generator owners, and private sector investors partnered together to bring such a beneficial outcome to the area. As Toula is expected to grow in its population, two times the number of needed solar panels have been installed on the farm. Nowadays, Toula is in contact with the national electricity company trying to set an agreement allowing Toula to trade or sell surplus energy at peak times.

Media Exposure:

• Can Tripoli be brought out of darkness with clean energy? January 25, 2023: An-Nahar, Article AR.
• Is it possible to bring the city out of darkness and disseminate the Tula model to the municipalities? January 25, 2023: NNA, Article AR.
• Can Tripoli be brought out of darkness with clean energy? January 25, 2023: Al-Joumhouria, Article AR.
• Toula’s Solar Farm Energy… an electrical model, January 25, 2023: nida-alwatan, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, in which the deputies of Tripoli participated: Is it possible to pull the city out of the darkness and generalize the Toula model to the municipalities? January 25, 2023: LIMS, Article AR.
• Can Tripoli be brought out of darkness with clean energy? January 25, 2023: Janoubia, Article AR.
• Can Tripoli be brought out of darkness with clean energy? January 25, 2023: Lebanese- Forces, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, in which the deputies of Tripoli participated: Is it possible to pull the city out of the darkness and generalize the Toula model to the municipalities? January 25, 2023: baladiyat, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, in which the deputies of Tripoli participated: Is it possible to pull the city out of the darkness and generalize the Toula model to the municipalities? January 25, 2023: klyoum, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 2, 2023: An-Nahar, Article AR.
• A meeting on “The Role of Municipalities in Securing Renewable Energy” organized by the “Lebanese Institute for Market Studies” in cooperation with Notre Dame University – Louaize, February 1, 2023: NNA, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 1, 2023: lebeconomy, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 1, 2023: Janoubia, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 1, 2023: Beirut24, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 1, 2023: Lebanese- Forces, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 1, 2023: nabd, Article AR.
• A meeting on “The Role of Municipalities in Securing Renewable Energy” organized by the “Lebanese Institute for Market Studies” in cooperation with Notre Dame University – Louaize, February 1, 2023: elqarar, Article AR.
• The role of municipalities in securing renewable energy” and an examination of how to generalize the Toula’s model, February 1, 2023: akhbaralyawm, Article AR.
• A meeting on the role of municipalities in providing renewable energy, February 2, 2023: khiyam, Article AR.
• How can municipalities secure electricity through solar farms energy? February 1, 2023: ad-dawra, Article AR.
• A meeting on “The Role of Municipalities in Securing Renewable Energy , February 1, 2023: almontasher, Article AR.
• A meeting on “The Role of Municipalities in Securing Renewable Energy , February 1, 2023: almarkazia, Article AR.
• A meeting on “The Role of Municipalities in Securing Renewable Energy , February 1, 2023: Magvisions, Article AR