The Prime Minister of the Interim Government, Abdullah Al-Thinni, held a meeting with the leaders of the oil and electricity sectors at the government headquarters in Benghazi in order to discuss the problems of electricity and fuel supply.
“The interest of the citizen is the main goal of the government,” Al-Thinni said, pointing to the importance of overcoming any personal or political differences to reach a real solution to the electricity crisis.
He stressed that Libyan citizens must be informed of the real causes behind the electricity problem.
Al-Thinni revealed that a meeting had been held during the last period with the Speaker of Parliament, Ageela Saleh and the Governor of Benghazi. “We agreed to bring in 4 ships of oil and allocate the required financial amount for that,” Al-Thinni revealed.
“It was agreed to form a parliamentary committee to follow up on the issue, but unfortunately these agreements have not yet been implemented on the ground.”
Al-Thinni pointed out that the reason for the electricity crisis is not a technical defect, but rather the lack of fuel for the power plants.
He explained that the closure of oil facilities was the result of tribes’ anger at the unfair distribution of oil revenues benefitting the west of the country in spite of most productive fields being located in the eastern region.
Al-Thinni exclaimed, “Although Libya is one of the largest oil-producing and exporting countries, we import fuel because there are no refining companies.”
He confirmed that the fuel and electricity crisis will be completely resolved by the end of next October, if the 4 ships are brought from abroad.
On 14 September, Al-Thinni submitted his resignation to the Parliament Speaker, Ageela Saleh, after large-scale demonstrations. Protesters took to the streets to express their anger on the permanent power cuts, fuel shortages and the high cost of living.