Israel’s electric authority using funds from sale of power plant to fund wartime needs

Israel's Electric Authority said that income from the sale of the "Eshkol" power station will be transferred "first and foremost" to cover expenses caused by the war

Tel Aviv: Israel’s Electric Authority said that income from the sale of the “Eshkol” power station will be transferred “first and foremost” to cover expenses caused by the war in Gaza.

Emergency preparedness in the energy sector in general and the electricity sector in particular is carried out on an ongoing basis. Therefore, the electricity tariff also includes costs for emergencies.

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The electricity sector has been prepared for an emergency in recent years in accordance with government decisions dedicated to the issue as well as in accordance with the policy principles “Preparing the electricity sector for an emergency from June 23, 2019” established by the then Minister of Energy, Yuval Steinitz, and which were not published for security reasons.

Despite the preparation, during a war, a reality may arise that will incur additional costs, both due to the use of more expensive fuels, and due to maintaining the integrity of the system for a continuous supply of electricity, as much as possible.

Therefore, the Authority publishes the options for financing excess costs in connection with the war, to the extent that there will indeed be heavy costs. The Authority is already determining – to the extent that excess, one-time revenues are received from the sale of the “Eshkol” power plant, the Authority will designate the use of these revenues first and foremost for the purpose of covering one-time expenses for the war.

As soon as the disaster became known on the seventh of October, the Electricity Authority switched to operating in an emergency mode, in accordance with the instructions of the Ministry of Energy, which serves as the supreme authority for energy and water during the war.