The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said power production goes down by 200 megawatts as of Friday reaching a critically low limit of only 30% of production capacity by Sunday.
"A tough power rationing program would be applied," he said.
Two tankers loaded with fuel oil for the power stations have been waiting in Lebanese territorial waters for almost two weeks pending settlement of cost by the finance ministry, the source said.
The finance ministry refuses to settle the account before receiving a transaction from the power authority covering production costs for the past three months, the source added.
The power authority, however, has not managed to collect fees for its services from areas that are not under state authority, mainly regions controlled by Hezbollah "that is why it does not have enough revenue to cover fuel oil purchases for its stations," the source explained.
A statement released by Interior Minister Hassan Sabaa said police has not been able to prevent 160 illegal construction sites in Hezbollah-controlled south Beirut.
"If police cannot prevent illegal construction, and power authority fee collectors get beaten up while trying to carry out their duties in areas where they cannot have police protection, how would the power authority be able to cover its expenses?" the source asked.
Tags: Economy, Hezbollah, Lebanon, source: Naharnet, Ya Libnan
