Drinking water is becoming more scarce in Lebanon due to a severe fuel crisis.
According to The Middle East Eye, this fuel crisis has prompted companies to cut production. The shortage of fuel is having a major impact on production and distribution companies, so residents are seeing a steep increase in prices, including the price of bottled water.
The price of bottled water in Lebanon has skyrocketed in less than two years, reported The Middle East Eye.
The local currency is losing 90% of its value, so those still earning in the local currency are facing steeper drinking water costs.According to the country’s health ministry, there are over three dozen certified bottled water companies on its website. Tannourine is among one of the largest companies on the list, and the price of a 12-pack of 500ml bottles from the company at major supermarkets has quadrupled.
Tannourine's sales manager Ghassan Geagea said it and other large bottled water companies are struggling to operate with the worsening currency and fuel crisis, reported The Middle East Eye. Due to petrol and diesel prices, bottled water companies can not operate their trucks and bottling plants.
Even more, Lebanon’s water authorities face cracked and rusty pipelines that fail to treat water supply adequately.
To mitigate the issue, Lebanon’s Ministry of Industry allowed businesspeople to directly import fuel, rather than go through a licensed distributor, reported The Middle East Eye.
“We call it domestic water, not potable water,” said Elie Mansour, a UN habitat senior planning and infrastructure engineer about Lebanon’s water, reported The Middle East Eye. “Households that don’t get state water rely on private water trucks - but they cost a fortune now.”
