A multi-attribute assessment of electricity supply options in lebanon

The lack of holistic decision-making assessments has been the main reason behind Lebanon’s persistent energy challenges for a long time. Increasing the capacity of renewable electricity generation as well as conventional power plants running on imported fuels has been proposed to ensure energy security in Lebanon. However, this approach does not necessarily consider Lebanon’s most persistent energy challenges and the potential impacts of selected technologies on Lebanon’s scarce land and water resources. Relying on a System of Systems (SoS) perspective and considering the Climate, Land, Energy, and Water (CLEW) nexus, this study is an effort to help overcome Lebanon’s energy sustainability challenges while reducing impacts on the country’s valuable natural, economic, and social resources. Two parallel but complementary frameworks are used. First, through Resource Efficiency Assessment (REA), the potential impacts of the electricity technologies on the nation’s environmental and economic resources are evaluated. Next, the Sustainability Performance Assessment (SPA) considers a number of criteria relative to the region’s economic, social, environmental, and technical energy challenges. Using the Aggregate Performance Index (API), the relative performance of each energy is calculated based on the results of REA and SPA. Results suggest that offshore wind, solar photovoltaics, natural gas, geothermal, nuclear, and hydropower technologies are the most desirable electricity generation options in Lebanon based on the assumptions and values used in this study.