Lebanese, French officials float plan to rebuild Beirut port
Three and a half years after hundreds of tons of improperly stored ammonium nitrate ignited at the Beirut port, setting off one of the world's biggest non-nuclear explosions, Lebanese and French officials put forward a plan for reconstruction and reorganization of the port Wednesday.
The Aug. 4, 2020, explosion at Beirut's port killed more than 200 people, injured and displaced thousands and devastated entire neighborhoods of the city.
Since then, an investigation into the causes of the blast has ground to a halt, and reconstruction of the damaged areas has largely been carried out piecemeal with private funding as international funds promised for rebuilding were largely contingent on political reforms that never materialized.
A number of proposals that have been floated for reconstruction and redevelopment of the still-functioning port have floundered, including an ambitious plan suggested in 2021 by a group of German companies to redevelop the port alongside new commercial and residential developments.
In 2022, French shipping giant CMA CGM Group won a 10-year contract to run the container terminal at the port.
The French government funded the development of the plan presented Wednesday by two French engineering firms, Artelia and Egis. It will focus on rebuilding quays damaged in the explosion, reorganizing the port's layout to streamline traffic, and shifting the facility to solar power. A French public agency, Expertise France, conducted an assessment with recommendations for improving security at the port.
Lebanon will need to come up with an estimated $60- $80 million to complete the reconstruction. It plans on using the port's revenues which have been on the rise — after a slump amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Lebanon's descent into an unprecedented economic crisis — reaching $150 million in 2023, the port's Director General Omar Itani said at a press conference Wednesday.
Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the French ambassador to Lebanon also were in attendance, along with representatives of the French companies.
Mikati told reporters that Lebanon and France have "strong historical relations that we are proud of," referring to ties that go back to when the small nation was a French protectorate after World War I until independence in 1943.
"We consider France's support for Lebanon to be particularly important because it represents the heart of the international community," he said.
The French ambassador, Herve Magro, said rebuilding the Beirut port is one of France's "priorities in our support for Lebanon." He added: "The Lebanese economy indeed needs a reconstructed, modernized and secure port of Beirut."
However, the plan presented Wednesday did not address the fate of the port's massive grain silos, which had absorbed much of the shock of the explosion, effectively shielding the western part of Beirut from the blast.
The Lebanese government at one point planned to demolish the damaged silos but decided against it after families of the blast's victims and survivors protested, demanding their preservation as a memorial and in case they might contain evidence useful for the judicial probe.
A large portion of the silos collapsed in 2022, while the remaining section has been left in place.
13 March 2024, 17:27
04
WARNING: Any major project approved by this corrupt government subservient to Hizbollah will cost Lebanese and their children several times the actual cost.
A peaceful well governed nation can get loans at 2% yearly interest. Political instability increases interest to 6%-10% for same loan. In a country mired in political instability and controlled by a criminal militia acting as Iran’s Foreign Legion, interest will exceed 15%.
A loan payable in 30 years costs:
80% more if interest=2% (base)
474% more if interest=6% (6 times more)
1645% more if interest=10% (20 times more )
6521% more if interest=15% (81 times more)
This is why investments dried up after 2006, economy collapsed, banking system destroyed, and businesses went bankrupt. No major project should be approved until we liberate our country. Don’t be duped: All projects incorporate political instability costs and corruption costs paid to political leaders.
13 March 2024, 17:27
03
The political mafia should be in prison not making deals. They wasted $22 billion of Central Bank reserve since 2019 on non-productive projects, bogus subsidies, corruption, and Hizb illegal crossings. In contrast, I’ll consider 5 major infrastructure projects benefiting from Syrian labor (converting Syrian camps to strictly controlled work permit as in most Gulf nations):
1. Tunnels between coast and Bekaa also serving ports.
2. Monorail from Tripoli to Tyr
3. New international airport
4. Upgrade Beirut/Tripoli/Saida ports; automation & AI
5. Artificial island/cruise ports/wind turbine
Using Lebanese expertize and diaspora funds will have these projects constructed in a fraction of the cost. Average engineer rate in US/Europe is over $200 per hour. Managers, lobbyist, security, risk interest, kick-backs will quadruple the cost of any project compared to local firms like Dar El Handasa which planed Egypt’s new capital.
13 March 2024, 17:37
00
1. TUNNELS: ChatGPT info on Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM).
TBM Cost $10M to $100M (Boring Diameter 5 to 15m)
TBM Operation (fuel, concrete slabs, maintenance, etc): $5M/month
Daily boring speed 20 to 100m depend on soil
Workers 2,000 labors & 150 professionals
Assuming 12m-Diam TBM at $50M, $60M Oper/yr, 40m dig in rock per day; a tunnel from Antelias to Zahle/Chtoura (<25 km) needs 2 yrs. If 2,000 laborers @ $5/hr, 8 hrs/day ($880/month); 150 professionals at $25/hr ($4,330/mo); then tunnel total cost over 2 yrs & 20% contingency is $273 M. Future tunnels cheaper as TBM purchased & labor trained. Only $1 billion for 3 to 4 tunnels linking coast to Bekaa. Syrian laborers will earn enough to support family, live in dignity & register as in Gulf nations. Tunnels can carry fiber optics for gigaWifi in new tech hubs in Bekaa/Akkar. Excavated soil to fill artificial islands. Trucks will travel in 20min from Beirut to Bekaa via flat tunnel saving fuel & pollution.
13 March 2024, 17:51
00
2. MONORAIL:
Most recent cost info in a comparable region is Monorail being constructed by Bombardier/Orascom in Egypt. Two lines (100 KM) for $3 billion serving both sides of the Nile with 30 stations some in dense urban areas requiring land acquisition & people displacement. Half the cost is for elevated guideway & other half for trains/system (70 four-car driverless trains). Capacity is 45,000 daily trips. 30-year contract to build, maintain & operate. Considering Lebanon density requiring fewer trains, construction on side of road with little need for land condemnation (or over reclaimed sea from tunnel fill), available Syrian workforce & local cement it can be reasonably assume a modern monorail from Tripoli to Tyr can be constructed in around $3 billion. A small cost compared to benefits of linking major cities, improving mobility, reducing congestion and pollution, saving gas and attracting tourists. Good candidate for EU/US grants & low-interest loans from World Bank.
