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Lebanon:
"Energy and Water Week"
Projects Attracting Investments
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THIS ARTICLE
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Date Published:
19 November 2009
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Published in:
Al-Nahaar Daily Newspaper
Lebanon
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Original Language:
Arabic
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 View Original
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The syndicate of engineers in Beirut has organized the "Fifth Week for Energy and Water" at the "Engineer House" (Bait El Mohandes). The inauguration ceremony was attended by Cesar Abi Khalil representing the Minister of Energy and Water, Engineer Gobran Bassil, and the president of the Syndicate of Engineers Bilal El Alaily and a number of professors and students of the faculty of engineering at the Lebanese universities.
At the outset, El Alaily pointed out the following: "We consume great amounts of water to generate energy, and huge energy volumes to produce clean water. The environmental and hydrological restrictions are an obstacle facing increased energy production. High prices and other energy problems curb an increased water production. To this, climate change and the constant rise in oil prices makes governments seek legislation bills to motivate the use and marketing of alternative energy.
He elaborated on the decision of the EU (European Union) to produce around 20% of the whole volume of produced energy in terms of alternative energy by the year 2020. This is to ease the production of CO2 that directly impacts the phenomenon of global warming." He further pointed out that "This dilemma with regard to both water and energy, and in spite of it being a subject of concern and debate, yet it is for us, especially the engineers, an opportunity to tackle this problem with all that we are endowed with in terms of creativity and professional know-how."
Abi Khalil has delivered the speech of Minister Basil reiterating that "We need a huge workshop for formulating legislations, laws and attached decrees which would shifts the work from the pure theoretical concept to actions, and would allow stakeholders of energy affairs to act independently and avoid working on the basis of trial and error, which is a method that has been prevalent for a long time."
He drew the attention to the fact that Lebanon has joined IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency) and has signed its statutes. The Lebanese Center for Energy Preservation has also become a member in the Board of Trustees of RCREEE (Regional Center of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency) with headquarters in Cairo, in addition to it being the national coordinator and the executive secretariat of the Partnership between the EU and the international donor agencies, especially the "Mediterranean Solar Plan", where the Lebanese experts and stakeholders of the energy affairs have submitted thirty model projects. This is expected to attract investments to Lebanon, of which the national sector for energy and economy will benefit. It will open up the labor markets for the private sector companies and institutions, on top of which are the engineers specialized in electricity and mechanics."
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