Electricite Du Liban: A landmark from Beirut’s ‘golden age’ of modern architecture

Abstract

The Electricité du Liban (EDL) building is a formidable work of architecture, standing 14 storeys tall in the heart of Mar Mikhaël in Beirut, overlooking the sea and the coastal highway. The building, situated on Nahr Street, holds the administration offices and different divisions of the government’s electricity company. Designed in 1965 by local architecture firm Centre d’Etudes Techniques et Architecturales (CETA) following an architecture competition, EDL bears to this day a trace of Beirut’s ‘golden age’ for planning, architectural visions and local trajectories.