Syrian refugees use
equivalent of a power plant

Additional electricity

covered by power barges

Displaced Syrian families use 486 megawatts (MW) of electricity per year, an equivalent of five hours a day or $333 million per year, according to The Impact of the Syrian Crisis on the Power Sector and Priority Recommendations report. Funded by the Netherlands, the report was prepared by the Ministry of Energy and Water and UN Development Programme (UNDP).

Luca Renda, UNDP Lebanon Representative, said: “The impact was highest near hospitals, which were forced to rely more on diesel generators, as well as schools.”

By publishing the report, the ministry’s objective is to shed light on the energy sector, which has been left out of any international assistance programs. Minister

Cesar Abi Khalil said: “This is a call out to donors, international NGOs, and the UN to consider energy as a sector that should benefit from funding in the framework of the international response to the Syrian crisis.”

Renda said: “The electricity sector today is neither better nor worse than it was before the Syrian crisis.”

The Turkish power barges, Fatmagul and Orhan Bey, were able to cover the additional demand instead of increasing overall power feed. They generate around 400 MW combined of power.

The report’s survey was conducted on 350 Syrian families and 60 institutions across the country, according to AEMS, the company that undertook the survey.