Renewable energy sources are not only a good solution for the environment, but they are also a cheap solution to increasingly expensive fossil fuels and electricity derived from coal and fuel oil. At the same time, renewable energy sources are also the basis for building new relations based on cooperation and common prosperity, even where open antagonisms existed until recently. This is the case with Israel and the Middle East. Energy has been a geostrategic “weapon” until now, but it seems that the sun, wind, water, and other green energy sources will have the same importance in the very near future.
Israel in its environment in the region has a series of open political issues with the countries of its immediate environment. Investments and energy transformation is obviously an opportunity that opens up a field for cooperation and building new relationships in the region.
In the energy transformation segment, Israel is becoming a market that is yet to develop and will open opportunities for domestic as well as foreign investors. In the past decades, the country managed to get rid of coal and implement gas technologies. Focusing on that segment, investments in renewable energy sources are not at an enviable level. This situation encouraged the country’s political leaders to announce support for and creation of a business climate that will allow greater expansion in this sector.
At the beginning of the year, the Government of Israel announced an increase in the capacities of renewable energy sources, up to 40% of the total production by 2030, and the remaining percentage would fall to natural gas. In the direction of strengthening the commitments and sending positive signals, the announcement of the Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, for the fulfillment of the global climate goals by 2050.
According to the plans, the installed capacity of renewable energy sources should increase from the current 3.7 GW to 7.4 GW by the middle of this decade, that is, in the next two to three years. This is an optimistic plan, the realization of which will require fresh capital, a good business climate, and infrastructure support. The largest part of investments, according to the plan, will be directed to solar energy capacities, and work is also being done on the development of technologies for increasing energy storage capacities.
The intensification of investments in renewable energy sources in Israel will be an excellent investment opportunity in several aspects. The country has an important geostrategic significance and an opportunity for regional connection and expansion of investments in the region, which creates an opportunity for the creation of greater capacities and strategic positioning.
Israel is a country with excellent natural sources, especially for energy from the sun, and this also applies to countries in the region. At the same time, Israel and the countries in the region need greater capacity from renewable energy sources, and not least technological development and innovation, segments where Israel has made tremendous progress.
Enlight Renewable Energy and NewMed Energy are leading energy companies that, in addition to investing in energy projects in Israel and other countries in the world, have started developing and implementing projects in seven Arab countries, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Morocco, and Egypt. Solar energy will be the most dominant energy source in these projects, and the two companies will combine their expertise, one in renewable energy sources, and the other with their good connections in the region.
These projects are also significant because they strengthen cooperation and diplomatic relations between countries that have had very delicate mutual relations so far. Investments in renewable energy sources open a new era of cooperation, which offers a new influx of fresh capital in the region, but also the creation of a strong market that will have a significant place on the future energy map.