Cleaning up and going green

Between 2011 and 2015, the overall direct investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency and green buildings in Lebanon exceeded $450 million. According to Riad Salameh, governor of Banque du Liban (BDL), Lebanon’s central bank, more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs were created in this sector during that same period. The records of the Lebanese Center for Energy Conservation (LCEC) at the Ministry of Energy and Water echo the statement of Governor Salameh: the number of companies working in the very specific field of solar water heaters rose from 25 in 2010 to more than 170 today. The number of companies working in the green or energy audit business, meanwhile, rose from four to more than 30 in 2015. Finally, the number of companies working in the solar photovoltaic sector increased from around five in 2010 to more than 70 today. Most of these companies are expanding their activities, thus