For the production of “energy in Lebanon” … A statement from the “Directorate of Petroleum”

The General Directorate of Petroleum announced in a statement that “after the General Directorate of Petroleum sent the terms of conditions signed in accordance with the rules, to carry out public tenders aimed at ensuring the need for the EDL for diesel and fuel oil, and in In the interest of the principle of transparency and raising awareness in the Lebanese public opinion of what the process of filling in the condition books has reached, the General Directorate of Petroleum summarizes the details of the exchange of notes with the Bidding Department, noting that part of the exchanged letters were published by the bidding administration in the media, contrary to the rules followed in administrative correspondence. We also have nothing to hide, hence this statement. “

And he said: “On 10/10/2018, and by mandate of the Council of Ministers, the competent department deposited in the Bidding Department the draft books of the aforementioned bases, in their complete form, for the review and administration of their observations , in accordance with what is required by current laws and regulations ”.

He added: “The path of successive responses to the management of tenders began, from the sending of notes and inquiries to the request for amendments, some are administrative, others are technical and in part, and the General Directorate of Petroleum responded on each occasion to the consultations and took some notes that were received and held meetings with the administration. Tenders to accelerate the completion of the terms of reference.

From here on, the Directorate is surprised by “this unjustified behavior, since the Bidding Department has competence and experience in the preparation of books of special conditions, and it was expected that the General Directorate of Petroleum would deliver its full notes in a time, to introduce the required amendments and additions, to launch public tenders as soon as possible “.

The Directorate wonders if this administration deals in the same way with the other departments when taking notes in the condition books prepared by it and uses the same method to address the same method that it used in its last letter to the Directorate General of Petroleum on 11/30/2020, which exceeded the principles of administrative and legal communication.

It should be noted that “the notes of the bidding administration have exceeded the administrative notes of the condition books, starting with:

Interference in the technical specifications of fuels that can only be determined by the manufacturers of electrical laboratories, which is the authority in charge of setting the specifications and not others, which represents an infringement of the authority’s competence in technical matters.

Ignoring the decision of the cabinet for the purchase of fuel oil and gas oil “ through an international tender in which international oil companies participate ”, according to the concept expressed in Cabinet Resolution No. 4, dated 07 / 02/2020, without introducing secondary third parties, which inevitably leads to higher prices. And the elimination of the elements of transparency required, and the violation of laws and government decisions. The surprise was the bidding department’s insistence on involving Lebanese companies under the pretext of opening the door to competition, on other occasions to approve a local bidder and on other occasions to allow local companies to enter through ” joint ventures “with international companies without a justified added value arising. In all cases, this matter expressly violates the decision of the Council of Ministers.

His repeated insistence on lowering the ceiling of the conditions imposed on companies that wish to participate in the public tender, pointing out that the General Directorate of Petroleum had raised the ceiling of those conditions in order to ensure that a supplier that respects its obligations and has solvency is assured in these difficult circumstances, especially when supplying fuel for electricity production. It is at the national level, and the company that will provide the fuel to the EDL must be fully responsible for the continuous obtaining of fuel for energy production, and the administration has forced a certain reduction of this limit to accelerate the launch of the tender and don’t pretend to hinder it.

Unfortunately, however, it seems that the head of the bidding department, using the method of frequent observations and suggestions and their succession, has taken the position of the judge and the ruler to prepare the condition books, and all this leads to hampering the completion of these books and the launch of the tender, and therefore disrupt the operation of public facilities.

Finally, and based on the above, and given that the supreme interest of the country and energy security are above all, the General Directorate of Petroleum wishes to manage the bids, and after sending the condition books in accordance with the rules, which “assume its responsibilities and exercise its functions and role and launch the tender as soon as possible for the continuity of energy production in the EDL and to provide electricity to all Lebanese regions”.