Unlocking Lebanon's Potential: 2.4 Billion Dollars Await Settlement from Quarry and Crusher Owners

2.4 billion can easily enter the state treasury from quarry and crusher owners.

How? 

Simply by having quarry and crusher owners settle their outstanding dues. 

In Lebanon, there are 1,607 quarries and crushers, whether licensed or unlicensed, distributed across all regions, according to a field survey conducted by the Lebanese Army.

Mount Lebanon Governorate is the most affected, with 518 quarries and crushers spread over an area exceeding 4 million square meters. Naturally, this governorate's dues would be the highest, estimated at $845 million.

The Bekaa region ranks second. In Baalbek-Hermel alone, 491 quarries and crushers cover over 3 million square meters, and the dues owed to the state amount to $450 million. 

In the West and Central Bekaa, with 164 quarries and crushers, the owners would need to pay the state $282 million.

Moving to the North, which comprises 164 quarries and crushers, it ranks third. 

The total dues for this region amount to $405 million, covering an invested area of 2.8 million square meters.

Meanwhile, Akkar Governorate is the least affected in the North and among all governorates, with 87 quarries and crushers and the lowest dues of $45 million.

In the South, quarries and crushers in the South Governorate, numbering 108, extend over an area exceeding 1.3 million square meters. 

If the owners of these quarries pay their dues, they would contribute $182 million to the state treasury.

Lastly, we arrive at Nabatieh Governorate, which houses 75 quarries and crushers over an area of 1.4 million square meters.
 
The dues owed in this governorate amount to $186 million.

In total, the invested areas in all of Lebanon's quarry and crusher sector cover 15.15 million square meters, with dues reaching $2.4 billion. If this amount is paid to the state treasury, it could serve as an entry point for reviving the economy.