Waste tenders terminated today. Frem: Cheating was obvious in prices that were supposed to be lower

The Council of Ministers annulled, during an exclusive session held at City Hall today, the results of the waste tender announced yesterday.

"We didn't approve the tenders because the prices offered were too high," said Minister of Labor Sejaan Azzi. "The terms of reference should be modified and companies should study and submit their bids again," he said. The Government considered the prices to have been higher than Sukleen's.

Prices submitted yesterday by bidding companies rang...

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Akkar receives grant of $100 million. Allocation to fund Arab Highway, Lebanese University, hospitals

The Council of Ministers approved today a grant of $100 million for the Akkar caza for the next three years.

The money will be used to fund main infrastructure projects that have long been needed in the area, according to Akkar Parliament Member, Moin Merehbi.

"We will use part of the money to fund the Arab Highway continuation, which costs $300 million and another part to establish Lebanese University faculties," he said.

Among the projects that are a top priority in Akkar ...

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Homeless shelter chain planned.

'Rouyati Charity Lebanon Rest Home', a project by the Rouyati Charity Foundation, is looking for funders and investors to kick-off its homeless shelter.

According to Rewa Younes, President of the Foundation, Advocate at Canon Law, and a Counselor in Marital and Family Matters, the first center requires no less than $4 million to be completed.

The project consists of a center that accommodates the homeless, elderly, infirm, orphans, abused women and their children, and whoever need...

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Waste tender sees happy ending. Average price $5 less than Sukleen

The Ministry of Environment announced today the results of the waste tender for the sweeping, collection, treatment, and land-filling for the next seven years, renewable once for three years.

"The company with the lowest price will be contacted by the Council for Development and Reconstruction and the international consultants, who will conduct a final financial audit," said Mohammad Machnouk, Minister of Environment.

For the first service area of Beirut and its northern and south...

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Forest lodges attract investors and NGOs. Over 15 sites and 115,000 m2 of forest

Les Cabanes de Maasser El Chouf opened two weeks ago. It is developed on a 3,000 square meter piece of land, close to the Shouf Nature Reserve. It has nine bungalows and can host up to 27 guests.

The owner, Salim Nasser, said that there is an increasing demand for this type of lodging. "Wood lodging is getting trendier." His concept was co-funded by Arcenciel, a local NGO. The total investment is around $150,000.

There are over 15 forest lodges in the country. They occupy over 11...

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Private Hospital calling the Ministry to pay its dues.

The Syndicate of Private Hospitals announced that the Ministry of Public Health has not yet signed the hospitalization contracts with the hospitals for 2015. Hospitals are accepting patients without any legal or financial coverage to avoid a health crisis.

The Syndicate said that this measure will threaten the loss of the hospitals' rights especially since around $120 million in financial dues from 2000 till 2011 have not yet been paid to the hospitals.

The Syndicate called for ...

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Miramar Hotel & Spa extends its premises.

Miramar Hotel & Spa, in Qalamoun-Tripoli, a beach resort built in the early 1990s, is extending its premises and building Miramar 2.

The project is being built on a 10,000 square meter plot of land adjacent to the first property. It consists of five blocks, each with three aboveground floors, and one underground. The total built-up area is 10,000 m2.

The space will host 53 chalets, pools, and other facilities. Works will start in February 2016 and will be completed by June 2017, s...

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Garbage tender results postponed for the third time. Waiting for evaluation reports by some consultants

The results of the tenders for the cleaning, collection, and treatment of garbage were postponed until Tuesday, according to the Minister of Environment (MoE) Mohammad Machnouk. This is the third time the tender results have been postponed. The results were previously expected to be announced on Monday, then Tuesday.

The adjournment was due to not having enough advisory reports from the ministry's international consultants on the issue, read an MoE statement. The three international consu...

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100 festivals for 100 summer nights. $10 million budget

"There are over 100 festivals this summer, growing from around 50 in the previous years," said Nada Sardouk, Director General of the Ministry of Tourism (MoT).

International Festivals such as Baalbek, Beiteddine, and Byblos, attract a high number of visitors and offer an upper scale program with varied international artists. Emerging festivals, which have been celebrated for over five years, attract a growing number of celebrities and audiences. These include Jounieh International Festiva...

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Al Sharq University to open in Minyeh. A $100 million investment to accept 5,000 students

Construction works on Al Sharq University are expected to be finalized in Minyeh, in the North by early 2016.

Tawfic Awji, Chairman of Al Sharq University Endowment, said: "There is a shortage of universities in this region. We will be targeting Minyeh, Doniyeh, Akkar, and Syrian students."

Investment in the university is estimated at $100 million. It will be built on a 274,000 square meter land plot, with a total built-up area of 185,000 m2. The university will be located directl...

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Five year tourism program between Lebanon and Jordan.

The Ministry of Tourism signed last week a tourism executive program with the Jordanian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities that extends over a five-year phase. It implements the tourism convention signed between the two countries in 1964.

The program includes activating, marketing, and promoting mutual tourism, in order to achieve common goals for developing international and regional tourism in both countries.

According to Jean Abboud, President of the Association of Travel and ...

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Hermel wastewater project by EU.

The European Union is funding a wastewater project with the goal of upgrading the quality of life in Hermel.

The project is composed of a wastewater treatment plant that will see construction kickoff within the next week. Maalouf Contracting will handle construction of the plant, which is expected to take one year. "The company will also supervise the plant's operations for another year," said Hisham Iskandar, member of the Hermel municipality. The plant will be located in the area of Raj...

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The Graveyard: Modern funeral services in Jbeil. The $5 million project will offer tombs for sale

The Graveyard, a 15,000 square meter landscaped green area in Jbeil will be dedicated to over 1,500 graves and tombs.
It is owned by Maintenance Renovation Management Real Estate (MR2), owned by Nadim Maatouk. It is designed by architect Ramy Maacaron.

The project will include a church, full funeral services, a flower shop, a restaurant, 24-hour security, and other related amenities. Graves and ceremonies follow various Christian rites.

Construction permits are in process and w...

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IUL to open campus in Wardanieh in 2016.

The Islamic University in Lebanon (IUL) will open a new campus in Wardanieh in the school year 2016-2017.

The new campus will be built on a 170,000 square meter plot of land. It will host 15 buildings as well as playgrounds, conference halls, a library, parking, and residential apartments for students and teachers.

The Wardanieh campus will have capacity to accept around 15,000 students. It will include faculties for engineering, letters and human resources, touristic sciences, I...

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Régie to support needy villages.

The Ministry of Finance has launched a support project for needy villages through its Régie department, the state-controlled monopoly.

The Régie will make grants of around $30,000 for each village, during 2015. The funds will be used in development projects such as lake irrigation systems, agricultural training centers, artesian wells, and new roads.

According to Abdel Mawla El Mawla, Manager of the Leaf Department at the Régie, around nine needy villages wi...

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Property price index ready next year. To help investors, developers, and valuation experts

The Union of Orders of Engineers is preparing to launch a periodic index of apartment prices and areas, with the support of ministries and banks.

The Union will first release the unit areas in all cazas and then expand it to include average prices of these units according to area.

Joseph Abdo, Project Manager, said: "Our goal is to collect data from all stakeholders related to the valuation process and merge them into one formula." The program would be fed daily from the different...

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‘Model Village’ project in Kawkaba.

An ecological 'Model Village' will be completed within three months in Kawkaba, a village on the intersection of the South and West Bekaa.

The project consists of a rural tourism venue composed of seven lodging units or prefab bungalows. It will also host a restaurant and point-of-sale for rural products, including authentic produce.

The project is established on a 4,000 square meter plot of land, part of a 60,000 m2 lot owned by the Municipality of Kawkaba. Kamel Kalaani, Chairm...

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Janat El Rmeileh residential resort underway.

The opening of Janat El Rmeileh, a residential resort, will be announced next month. The project will be completed within three years, said Moustafa Sammak, engineer and major shareholder. It will be located in Rmeileh, nearby the IUL University, which is still under construction.

The resort will consist of 75 villas with an adjacent community center, including a gym, restaurants, cafés, swimming pools, landscaped areas, and a supermarket. The project is being built on a 30,000 squ...

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Corrugated carton factory in Majdal Anjar.

Omega for National Industries, a manufacturer of corrugated carton, opened a factory in Majdal Anjar, Zahle last July.

Investment in the project is $8 million, including the cost of the land plot, which is 25,000 square meters. The built-up area of the factory is 5,000 m2. It is equipped with machines imported from China.

The production capacity of the factory is around 4,500 tons of corrugated cartons per year. Total local production of corrugated carton is 60,000 tons per year,...

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One million square meters of malls in four years. Upcoming projects worth over $1 billion

In the coming four years, mall retail spaces will reach over one million square meters.

The 13 existing malls, including ABC Ashrafieh, City Mall, Beirut City Center, Beirut Souks, and the Le Mall chain total over 350,000 m2.

There are at least 14 upcoming malls expected to begin operations successively as of this year. These include Gibran Mall, Boulevard Mall, Cascada Village, The Spot Choueifat and The Spot Tayouneh. These alone total 500,000 m2.

The value of these new d...

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Shopping center planned for Ainab.

Royal Mall, a mixed use commercial center, is under construction in Ainab, the Aley Caza. It is expected to be operational by 2018.

The commercial center will be part of a four-building development, three among which will be residential. Royal Mall will be built on a 5,000 square meter land plot. The total built-up area will be 9,000 m2, out of which 5,000 m2 will be dedicated to the shopping facility. The shopping center will stretch over seven floors, two of which will be underground. I...

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Lebanon Medical City to open in Akkar. Investment of up to $50 million to build hospital and nursing institution

Construction works on the Lebanon Medical City have been launched by Bodon Group in Akkar, which will be completed in two years.

Abdel Rahim El Bodon, Chairman, said: "We were intending to open a mall, but after conducting a market study, we found it more feasible to change the plan and build a hospital instead."

"There is a shortage of hospitals that offer high quality services in the Akkar region and ours will be built with high standards," said El Bodon.

The land plot i...

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Ice-cream factory opened in Zahle. Production capacity reaches 225 tons per season

La Douceur, a manufacturer of Arabic and Italian ice-cream, opened a factory in Zahle last July.

The $4 million project has a total built-up area of 2,500 square meters. It is equipped with fully automated machines imported from Italy and Greece.

The factory created around 20 full time jobs. Its production capacity reaches 225 tons of ice-cream per season. Total local ice-cream production is estimated at 1,500 tons per season, according to Gilbert Maalouf, General Manager. He said...

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Koura Mall redesigned to double retail space. Restaurants and a cineplex added to the project

Koura Mall owner announced last April that it had begun excavation to more than double the size of the mall. Completion date has since been delayed, however, from late 2016 to late 2017.

The project is owned by GA Properties, chaired by George Abdallah, a real estate developer. He said that since the announcement of the project, there has been so much demand has he elected to reconsider the original design and size of his property. According to Abdallah, the mall has a strategic locatio...

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LBCI wins lawsuit against Al Waleed. Five channels to go back on air

The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI) won last week a lawsuit filed before the French arbitration court against Prince Al Waleed Bin Talal. The Sole Arbitrator has decided to transfer full title and ownership of 'LBC Europe', 'LBC America', 'LBC Australia', 'LBC Africa', 'LBC Maghreb' and of any trademark that has been registered or used for broadcasting LBCI programs and grids in: Europe, America, Australia, Africa, and Maghreb.

The court said that claimant (LBCI) w...

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$1 billion in stimulus By Central Bank in 2016. To boost credit and channel excess liquidity into the economy

Governor Riad Salameh said the Central Bank (BDL) would issue a new economic stimulus package in 2016 worth around $1 billion, because the political and security situation in the region is hampering the country's ability to generate growth.

"This amount could be increased if needed, Salameh said. "We need to stimulate credit because the growth in credit this year is low. There is excess liquidity and we need to channel it into the economy," he said.

Credit was growing at a rate of ...

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The European Union supports Syrian refugees with €17 million more.

The European Union (EU) has increased its humanitarian funding in Lebanon for the Syria refugee crisis response by an additional €17 million ($18.5 million). The funding is part of an aid package of €64 million ($69.6 million) to help people affected by the worsening Syrian crisis, in Syria and its neighboring countries.

"Life for Syrian refugees is getting harder and harder, as they have spent most of what savings they had on food, housing and medical treatment", said Bruno Rotival, Head...

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Three companies accepted for the Beirut waste tender. Contracts will be awarded in the next few days

The Ministry of Environment (MOE) said today that Beirut and the southern suburbs have finally received three offers from companies that presented proposals in a tender for the collection, transport, and sorting of solid waste.

The three joint ventures are: South for Construction with Egyptian AMA, local CET-American West Coast- Austrian Saubamacher, and Lavajet-Italian Daneco-Batco.

"A fourth offer from Veolia Water was received but was rejected because it did not abide by the ten...

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Mirror mirror on the wall who will run our mobile call?. Six international companies will participate in the tender

The Ministry of Telecom (MoT) announced today the companies that will participate in the mobile tender expected to take place on September 8.

The companies are English Vodafone, the world's second largest mobile operator, with 465 million subscribers and a yearly turnover of $35 billion. Other applicants include French Orange Telecom, Turkcell, Kuwaiti Zain, Deutsche Telekom, and Malaysian Maxis.

The Bids Department of the Central Inspection Board refused Egypt Orascom Telecom's ap...

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Tourism grew by 15 percent in first six month. Sardouk: Stakeholders are working hand-in-hand

The number of inbound travelers grew by 15 percent during the first semester of 2015, compared to the same period last year. It is the first double digit growth since 2010, with over 671,000 visitors.

Nada Sardouk, Director General of the Ministry of Tourism (MOT), said: "We launched the 'Live Love Lebanon' campaign to change the mood and attract the attention of our neighbors. The results of our set of strategies and campaigns are starting to show," she said.

With over 217,000 vis...

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Industrialists: Give us the trash!. Sector to lose millions of dollars in case of trash export, incineration

The Association of Industrialists (ALI) said today that factories are the economic sector's most harmed segment due to the export or incineration of waste. It called on the Government to adopt a comprehensive strategy that respects industrialists' interests.

Representatives at ALI said that they used to buy sorted trash from Sukleen, the company that collected, sorted, and landfilled trash before July 17. Around 30 percent of the trash is recyclable and the resulting sorted material is th...

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$1.5 billion in Eurobonds to be issued next month. Issue of the balance of $3.5 billion due before the end of 2015

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) is preparing to issue a Eurobond on September 1 to cover the country's debt service for the full year of 2015.

Parliament has approved the issuance of bonds worth $2.5 billion, although the amount due for this year is worth $3.5 billion. The MoF had already finalized the issuance of Eurobonds worth $2.2 in February and is working now on covering the remaining amount.

In 2014, the MoF submitted a draft law to enable the Government to issue bonds worth ...

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LAU expands Jbeil campus. More than $25 million for engineering building and land expansion

The Lebanese American University (LAU) is adding a new building to its Jbeil campus for the Faculty of Engineering. It will be finalized in the fall of 2016.

Abniah is the contractor of the $25 million project, which will consist of six floors with a built-up area of 10,600 square meters. It will be equipped with high-tech laboratories and research departments for six engineering specializations: Industrial, mechanical, electrical, computer, civil, and chemical engineering.

Chr...

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Tile and stonewall factory to open in Hosrayel. Products to be exported to Australia and Arab countries

Nader Group for Marble Design, a manufacturer of marble and granite tiles and stonewalls, will open in the industrial zone of Hosrayel (Jbeil) later this year.

The company will manufacture tiles for the local and international markets. It has already received requests from Australia, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia, according to Naji Nader, Partner and General Manager.

The $5 million project will have a space of 6,000 square meters including the factory and warehouses. The high-tech equ...

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One hour of additional electricity coverage. Rising demand will bump power by 180 MW

Electricité du Liban (EDL) is raising power production by 180 MW to decrease outages and cope with rising demand.

There is wide gap between the average supply in electricity (1,650 MW) and the 2,000 MW in demand. It has been exacerbated by the heat waves and increased demand due to the influx of Syrian refugees. During the summer, demand spikes to 3,000 MW. This figure includes power consumed by citizens and produced by both EDL and private generators.

The overall power pro...

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A $60 million tourist project planned for Kfardebian. Project looking for investors to kick-off

Peak Highrise is a tourist project being developed in Kfardebian to consist of 162 eco-touristic leasable villas and serviced apartments in a tower-like architecture. The development will also include a wellness center, as well as a mix of restaurants and pubs.

The project is designed and owned by Omar Harb Architects. Harb said that his company is negotiating the concept with interested but confidential investors. "By December, we will settle on an investor who will be a co-owner, and w...

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Spartan expands its factory in Bchamoun.

Spartan Chemical Lebanon, a manufacturer of cleaning products, will expand its factory in the industrial zone of Bchamoun by September.

Kamal El Rifai, Partner and Sales Manager, said: "We will install new production lines to manufacture new items such as vegetable sanitizers and laundry detergents."

The $1 million expansion will increase the space of the factory by 2,000 square meters. It will create around 40 full time jobs.

The expansion will increase the production cap...

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One-stop-shops to sell various telecom services. Centers are expected to make these services more accessible to customers

The Ministry of Telecom (MoT) today inaugurated 13 one-stop-shops offering various telecom services provided jointly by Ogero, Touch, and Alfa.

The centers provide locals and tourists with landline telephony services, as well as mobile lines, and DSL. They also offer the possibility to pay bills and prepaid subscriptions fees. The MOT said that through these centers, telecom services will be within the reach of a greater number of users.

The centers belong to Ogero, which operates ...

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US grants $20 million in food coupons for Syrian refugees.

The Embassy of the United States in Lebanon announced that the US will grant $20 million for the World Food Program (WFP) in Lebanon.

This grant supports people harmed by the Syrian turmoil and provides food coupons to Syrian refugees.

WFP has contributed$1 billion in contributions for refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Egypt, and Iraq since 2013.
...

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Hospital beds to increase by 1,700 in three years. An $800 million investment will create 3,000 jobs

New hospitals are expected to create 2,750 job opportunities for nurses, administrative staff and physicians in the next three years.

Around $800 million will be invested in these new hospitals. "If the security situation enhances, these investments will improve medical tourism and attract patients from all regions," said Sleiman Haroun, Chairman of the Syndicate of Private Hospitals.

However, according to Haroun, these new hospitals will find difficulty in staffing nurses, becau...

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