BB Energy (Gulf) DMCC establishes endowment and annual scholarships at LAU
BB Energy (Gulf) DMCC has pledged additional support to LAU and is establishing an endowment and annual scholarship. The major energy trading company, which has offices around the world and is run by the Bassatne family, is a longtime friend and supporter of the university, and its representatives were on hand at a signing ceremony held on June 1 at LAU’s Beirut campus.
“There are a lot of lessons to be learned from BB Energy: commitment, trust, and honesty within their family and love for what they do. And that is crowned by their incredible commitment to philanthropy,” said LAU President Joseph G. Jabbra at the ceremony.
The BB Energy Annual Scholarship Grant and BB Energy Endowment Scholarship Fund will be awarded to financially needy and academically deserving graduates from Makassed Schools. The annual scholarship will be distributed starting fall 2017 and will cover half the tuition fees of two students in the engineering and medicine undergraduate programs throughout their studies. The endowment scholarship is expected to be distributed within a few years once the return on the endowed fund grows.
“We as Bassatne Group and BB Energy support LAU because we believe in the mission and vision of this great university,” said Walid Bassatne, Director of BB Energy (Gulf) DMCC.
General Manager of BB Energy (Gulf) DMCC Adib Bassatne echoed this sentiment saying, “We are very committed to supporting the prominent institutions in Lebanon, and since we understand all too well the difficult financial strain that parents are confronted with when paying for private universities, we decided our corporate social responsibility is toward supporting needy and deserving students from Makassed Schools.”
LAU is always seeking ways to further support students and alleviate their financial need, as Assistant Vice President for Development Nassib N. Nasr explains, “Relations with industry widens opportunities for LAU and its students and that is why we are actively engaged with business leaders in Lebanon and abroad, and especially those like BB Energy who value philanthropy just as much as our university.”
Mohammad Amine Daouk, President of the Makassed Philanthropic Association, attended the ceremony and expressed appreciation on behalf of the organization. “Everyone at Makassed is very grateful, and very thankful to BB Energy and LAU. This is a generous offer for our students,” he said.