Offshore ineptitude

Lebanon entered 2012 with the resolute promise to tap “huge wealth” from offshore hydrocarbons. Determined to ride in the new year on a wave of applauding headlines, the Minister of Energy and Water Gebran Bassil announced the creation of the Petroleum Administration, paving the way for the sector’s evolution.  In January the ministry announced that the board of the Petroleum Administration would be made public by the end of the month, the first licensing round for exploration launched within three months and the first contracts inked on paper by the end of the year. The bulk of the nation’s press obliged the minister, lauding a new page in Lebanon’s history, drunk on the promise of energy independence and untold wealth. However, as 2012 draws to a close the rhetoric rings hollow and the lofty plans remain stuck in the starting blocks.  The initial clamor was not without some justification. The