On August 23, drama and havoc broke out in a workshop hosted by the Lebanese Parliament’s energy committee. Accusations of lack of coordination and transparency between Mohammad Qabani, head of the parliamentary energy committee, and members of the Lebanese Petroleum Administration (LPA) quickly deteriorated and led to the LPA’s withdrawal from the meeting.
While a detailed account of this event can be found here, the Lebanese Oil and Gas Initiative (LOGI) finds that these dynamics uncover three major issues in the sector and recommends the following:
1. Clear communication and transparency between government institutions are needed
The argument between Qabani and the LPA was caused by the lack of communication, transparent decision-making processes and access of information between Parliament, the Ministry of Energy and Water and the LPA. While in theory the decision-making process and division of responsibilities between the legislative, executive and regulatory branches are well-defined for the oil and gas sector (and can be found here), this show of discord exposes a fundamental breakdown in working relations among the institutions.