The Turkish Karadeniz power company, which leased the “Fatmagul Sultan” power vessel to the Lebanese government, announced on Thursday that the fuel it had received to operate the ship “was not convenient”, explaining the reasons for the barge's malfunction.

"Shortly after the production process had started, the results of tests conducted by international laboratories revealed that the fuel we have been receiving was not convenient,” a statement issued by the company said.

"Electricite du Liban is now providing Fatmagul with the convenient type of fuel, which will allow the vessel to go back to producing energy.”

The statement detailed that before the malfunction occurred, the vessel had completed the operational examination phase under the supervision of a group of international independent experts and had started generating 188 megawatts of power, "even before the date mentioned in the contract had started."

"The barge is equipped with the latest technological systems and is operated by a team of 60 expert engineers and technicians. This is important for providing the necessary hours of power supply, which was highly welcomed by the Lebanese citizens.”

Karadeniz remarked: “Technical problems are not strange to big projects like this one, especially in what regards the convenience of the fuel's type.”

President Michel Suleiman tasked on Tuesday the Central Inspection Authority to investigate the causes of the malfunctions of the “Fatmagul Sultan” power-generating vessel.

He tasked the authority to uncover the circumstances that led to the malfunctions and determine the sides responsible for it.

Nine out of 11 generators on the Fatmagul Sultan barge have stopped functioning, media reports said in April, pointing out that the power-generating vessel is only producing 15 percent of its capacity, which is 27 megawatts.

“Since it began producing electricity, Farmagul Sultan didn't reach its capacity of production as it only generated around 80 percent,” the sources noted.