Paving the Way for the Mediterranean Solar Plan Activity 1.1.1: Benchmarking of existing practice against ______________________________________ - Country Report Israel - ______________________________ The Contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the Consortium MVVdecon/ENEA/RTE-I/Sonelgaz/Terna and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union
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Description of the electric power sector Israel’s installed capacity and electricity generation as at 2010 is, respectively, 12,987 MW and 56,102 GWh. Electricity from renewable energy sources currently represents 0.1 % of the country’s total generation. Israel’s renewable energy sources are hydro and wind power. Installed capacity share in Israel (2007)
Electricity generation at 2010 for the entire country, sub-divided by type of fuel and of power plant
installed capacity (MW) Energy Produced* (GWh) Thermal (coal) Thermal (oil) Combined cycle gas turbine Renewable
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Israel Electric Corporation IEC (Israel Electric Corporation) owns, maintains and operates 17 power stations sites, including 5 sites for steam driven power stations, and the national transmission and distribution systems. With an aggregate installed generating capacity of 12,769 MW (Draft Annual Statistical Report – Israel Electric Company), the company holds 98% of the country's generating capacity. As a state-owned company, IEC is included in Israel's WTO/GPA agreement. As such, IEC is required to use public tender procedures for procurement of equipment needed for new construction, maintenance, upgrading and conversions of its systems. While some projects are tendered out in open tender procedures, in most cases, a selective tendering process requires potential suppliers to pre-qualify to be included in IEC's approved suppliers' list.
Independent Power Producers (IPP)
The Electricity Law provides the framework for the increase of IPPs from 0.6% to 20% of Israel’s installed generating capacity. The national pipeline infrastructure for the transmission and supply of natural gas is almost complete and enables major industries to set up independent power stations to provide for their energy needs and sell the remainder to the national grid. The regulatory problems that kept the industry from developing have largely been removed, especially after the recent major off- shore natural gas discovery and the new purchase agreements between Israel Electric and its gas suppliers at a higher cost closer to the utility. The Public Utility Authority for Electricity has granted some two dozen of licenses to developers of private power stations. The large number of projects in various planning stages offer good opportunities for U.S. manufacturers, in particular of cogeneration equipment.
- The Electricity Sector Law was enacted in 1996, replacing IEC's 70- year concession to generate, supply and distribute electric power. The law introduced structural changes, transferring the electricity; sector to license-based activity, thereby preparing the grounds for the entry of "other players" apart from IEC. - Section 1 of the Electricity Sector Law sets forth its purpose as follows: "The purpose of this law is to regulate the activity of the electricity sector for the public good, while ensuring reliability, availability, quality, efficiency and the creation of conditions for competition and minimizing costs." - In accordance with the law, authority to issue production licenses is vested in the National Infrastructures Minister. Section 3 of the law provides that: "No person shall carry on activity unless under a license issued by the Minister of National Infrastructures."
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- Section 2 of the Electricity Sector Law defines the term "activity" as follows: "Each of the following: power production, transmission, distribution, supply or trade." Government Resolutions
After enacting the Electricity Sector Law, the government passed several resolutions with respect to independent power production, intended to enable entrepreneurs in the free market to invest in the construction and operation of power stations. Following is a list of some of the government resolutions pertaining to the electricity sector: - Government Resolution No. 2472 dated August 13, 1997 – the «Electricity Sector" – sets forth the principles for the electricity market, namely: increasing power production capacity by issuing licenses to IPPs, publishing tenders and granting licenses pursuant to the aforesaid purposes of the law. - Government Resolution No. 4155 dated August 12, 1998 – "Government Policy Concerning Electricity Generation". This resolution primarily governs the issue of power generation licenses to IPPs interested in selling power to non-vital service providers (i.e. not to IEC) without a tender, according to a quota and threshold conditions to be set forth by the Minister of National Infrastructures. - Government Resolution No. 123 dated August 22, 1999 – "Integration of IPPs in the Electricity Sector" – sets forth several principles dealing with the regulation of the sale of electric power to IEC (vital service provider); determining a quota for independent production using cogeneration technology; publishing a tender for IPPs; locating areas for private power stations. At that same session, the government decided to pass Resolution 125 "Electricity Sector – Sectorial Structure Supporting Competition". - Indeed, in the wake of Resolution 123 a joint team was appointed under the auspices of the Ministry of National Infrastructures, the Ministry of Finance and the State-owned Companies Authority. The team engaged the services of the international consulting firm, Deloitte & Touche. - Government Resolution No. 2184 dated August 16, 2000, further to the preceding resolutions, dealt with the preparation of land reserves for IPPs, the publishing of additional tenders and raising the production quota using cogeneration technology. - Resolution No. MK/43 of the Ministerial Committee for Corporate and Financial Affairs (Social-Economic Cabinet) dated November 4, 2002 – "Policy for Power Production by IPPs", in which the government regulated the issue of power generation licenses to IPPs. That same resolution determines, inter alia, that IPPs interested in selling electric power to entities other than Israel Electric Corp. could obtain an independent production license to do so, subject to conditions to be set forth by the Minister of National Infrastructures, provided that the plans are approved under the Planning and Construction Law.
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Electricity Sector (Conventional Independent Power Producer) Regulations, 5765-2004
In the aim of encouraging the construction and operation of IPP facilities consistent with the principles of minimizing production costs in the production sector and encouraging the sale of electric power by IPPs, the Minister of National Infrastructures enacted the Electricity Sector (Conventional Independent Producer) Regulations. These regulations determined a mechanism where an IPP could require IEC to purchase available production capacity for a payment equal to 80% of the normative cost of the production unit (an objective cost to be determined by the Electricity Authority) for each megawatt of available supply capacity that it provides IEC and 100% of the fixed operating and maintenance costs for each megawatt of available supply capacity. This mechanism serves in fact as a sort of "safety net" to guarantee full payment of the debt in case the producer does not sell the station's full capacity or part thereof. The regulations add that where the producer provides available production capacity to IEC, the producer may be obligated to provide electricity to the national grid at a fixed rate to be determined by the Electricity Authority, and this may reflect the production cost. The regulations also provide that from the date a production component or the normative cost is determined, as the case may be, in accordance with which the IPP enters into a transaction, and to back up the confidence of the IPP, no changes shall be made in the production component or the normative cost, as the case may be, for that IPP, except for the regular update of the components of the production component or the normative cost, as determined by the Electricity Authority.
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Support schemes to promote the use of energy from renewable resources in electricity 1- Targets and strategy of renewable energy
The Government of Israel supports the development of power projects fueled by the sun’s clean, abundant, and renewable energy, and undoubtedly has taken substantial steps towards advancing the use of renewable energy:
• Setting a guiding target for producing electricity from renewable sources at a
level of 10% of the county's energy requirements by 2020 (Once achieved, it would be equivalent to approximately 2,250 MW RE capacity, including 140 MW of biomass, 1,060 MW of wind, and 1050 MW of PV installations).
• Acting towards construction of renewable energy based power stations,
especially in the Negev and Arava areas, at a scope of no less than 250 MW every year from 2010 until 2020.
• Determining an interim target of 5% for generating electricity from renewable
• The Planning Authority will cooperate with the Electricity Authority, the Ministry
of National Infrastructure, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Israeli Land Authority and the Ministry of Defense to identify land lots suitable for construction of power plants based on renewable energies.
• The National Council will approve a national outline plan, which will mark sites
suitable for the construction of at least 500 MW within a year and a half from the Government's decision. The national council will act to approve the national outline plan subject to amendments and recommendations by the team of NOP 10 editors, within 4 months of it being submitted to them.
• Rules for optimal promotion of plans for power plants with tender and exempt
• The Public Utilities Authority will examine tariffs and criteria for applying the
Government's policy of encouraging construction of electricity production plants from renewable energies at a total volume of 500MW for the first phase. After realization of 350MW the tariffs will be re-examined.
2- Regulation
Israel has a well defined institutional setup for RE development. The Electricity Law 5756-1996 regulates the electricity sector in Israel. Its main mandate is to ensure the reliability, availability, quality, and efficiency of electricity distribution in the country. It also promotes the conditions for competition and cost minimization in the electricity sector. On the other hand, the Electricity Economic Law regulates the bidding
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procedures for granting electricity production licenses for RE projects. Among energy authorities, PUA regulates power plants by determining tariffs and quota per each technology. Israel provides energy producers with a wide range of incentives to utilize renewable energies. There is presently no legally binding target. There is a declared target of Renewables supplying 10% of the energy required for 2020. Although in the form of Government Resolution, it is only a declaration. The same Government Resolution called for installation of 250 MW p.a. for each of the ten years 2011- 2020. Other than what was stated above (250 MW p.a.) no annual targets were set. There is constant supervision by the regulator (PUA) and the Ministry. The regulator is authorised to prohibit the Utility from purchasing electricity generated from excess renewable capacity (capacity installed in contravention to the quotas approved for renewable capacity). Government resolutions may be amended. It should be noted that there is presently discussion going on at government level with regard to the priorities among the renewable energy technologies. Stakeholders dealing with renewable energy The following paragraphs identify the country’s major stakeholders and describe their main responsibilities in the RE field:
Ministry of National Infrastructures (“MNI”): it is responsible for the formulation of RE policies in the country. The Ministry aims at implementing Government Decision No. 4450 (as of January 29th 2009), which sets a target of 10% of RE sources in Israel’s total energy generation 2020;
Public Utility Authority (Electricity) (“PUA”): it is responsible for the determination of the tariffs and the division of quotas between actual and potential producers of RE;
Ministry of Finance (“MoF”): it is in charge of launching a tender for the establishment of three RE power plants (2 thermal-solar power plants and one PV power plant). The ministry is part, together with the Ministry of National Infrastructures, of the Interministerial Tender Committee.
The Ministry of Interior ("MOIN"): it is responsible for all statutory planning activities, inter alia approval for the siting and construction of all types of power facilities. The National Council is an organ of the planning arm of the Ministry, as is a special planning committee charged with dealing with plans for utility grade facilities (in lieu of the local planning authorities).
The Israel Lands Administration: it is responsible for management of all government owned land (which comprises most of the State of Israel). It is responsible for putting land (Including land slated for the sites of power facilities) up for tender.
Major steps in incorporation of renewable energy into the Israeli market
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• August 1998 - the Government decided "to act to advance the development of
technologies for efficient usage of alternative energies and thereby reduce the dependency on imported fuel and reduce environmental pollution." An inter-departmental committee was established for the purpose of formulating administrative and legislative means for promoting the use of alternative energies, to offer projects in the field and recommend ways of combining local and foreign investors.
• November 2002 - the Government reached a decision to encourage the
construction and operation of electricity plants and power stations, which operate on renewable energies by private electricity producers. In addition, this decision included targets for the volume of electricity production using renewable energies: from 2007, up to 2% of the electricity produced for consumers will be from renewable energy plants. This rate will be increased by 1% every six years, so that by 2016 electricity produced from such plants will be up to 5% of the electricity supplied to consumers.
• August 2007 - the Government reached a decision regarding removing
obstructions from the energy market. The decision was, amongst other things, to form an inter-departmental team to remove obstructions from promoting projects for generating electricity using solar power, and it was determined that two solar power stations will be constructed at the Ashalim site with a capacity of 200 to 250 MW.
• March 2008 - the Government decided that tenders will be published for the
construction of thermo-solar power plants with a capacity of 80 to 125 Megawatts at Ashalim for stage 2; an additional tender will be published for construction of photo-voltaic power stations with a capacity of 15MW and the country will reserve itself the possibility to construct an additional photo-voltaic power plant with a capacity of 15 MW.
• August 2008 - the Government decided that the planning authority together
with the Ministry of National Infrastructure will promote the preparation of a national outline plan for the energy market's infrastructure (NOP 41), which will also address the field of renewable energy, including amongst other things defining conditions for location, construction and operation of projects for electricity production from the main types of renewable energy sources. The CEO of the Ministry of Environmental Protection will act to consolidate environmental guiding principles for the planning of projects in the field of renewable energy, which will, amongst other things, assist in speeding up planning procedures for projects in this field.
• January 2009 - the Government ratified the decision of the socio-economic
cabinet determining a guiding target and consolidating tools to promote renewable energies, especially in the Negev and Arava areas. This decision included new targets for the volume of electricity to be produced by renewable energies, which update those of 2002.
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• January 2010 - the Israeli Public Utilities Authorities (PUA) decided to regulate
feed-in tariffs, standards, licensing procedures for medium sized solar facilities with a capacity larger than 50 kW with a feed-in tariff of NIS 1.49. The regulation is to be in place until achieving a goal of 300 MW of nationwide implementation until the end of 2017, or the completion of the quota, whichever is achieved first. It is to be understood that 10% (30 MW) of this regulation will be offered to other than PV renewable energy technologies. The mentioned tariff will be reduced by 5% per annum from 2012 up to 2014. From 2014 the tariff will remain constant until the quota is exhausted.
Decision of the Public Utilities Authority (PUA)
According to the Government's decisions, the Public Utilities Authority is acting to determine the regulations for the purpose of encouraging construction of plants for producing electricity using renewable energies, including the solar field.
On August 16th 2006 Public Utilities Authority - Electricity determined the tariffs for production of electricity using solar energy divided into two classes of providers: production plants of 100 Kilowatt to 20 Megawatt and large production plants of over 20 Megawatts (decision 1 of meeting 177). Now the Authority is promoting a procedure for examining and determining updated tariffs and criteria, which will eventually replace this decision. The PUA Prerequisites for Receiving a "License in Principle" regarding mid-sized plants (51 kW-5 MW)
• Affinity to the land - The requestor of the license will have to prove affinity (i.e.
a pre-contractual or contractual right) to the land available for the project, be it private land, a tender or according to the decisions of the ILA. The Authority knows that in order to construct photo-voltaic plants of an installed capacity of up to 5 MW, there is need for allocating of tens of dunam (1 dunam = 1,000 sqm.) of land. The Authority will calculate the minimal land area required for a plant according to its electrical capacity and a minimal index of 8 dunam per installed Megawatt. The requirement for presenting an affinity to the land indicates, at this stage, the beginning of the process of allocating the land to the project, and is a significant layer of proving the seriousness of the entrepreneurship. It will be made clear that the regularization does not require that the plants be constructed on land, it is possible and even desirable that they will be established where allocation of designated land is not required, such as existing buildings, water reservoirs or any other possibility.
• Proof of Equity - The requestor of the license will demonstrate that they can
provide equity of at least 20% of the normative cost of the project. The PUA determines that the normative cost of a 1 MW plant is NIS 20 million.
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Accordingly, the Authority will update its decisions regarding the definition of normative value for a photo-voltaic station.
• Experience in the field - When examining the fundamental request for a
license, the professional team will, according to its discretion, examine various parameters of the application submission which indicate the entrepreneur's previous experience in the field, including whether the technology fulfils the criteria of photo-voltaic plants. It is not the Authority's intention to place limitations in front of technological advances, but at the same time, the entrepreneur will be required to prove experience in the field which indicates the seriousness of the request. The professional team will not disqualify a request before providing the entrepreneur with an opportunity to present his point of view.
• Connecting to the grid - The requestor of the license will provide the Authority
with a document from the ESP ("Essential Service Provider" – presently IEC) for connecting to the electricity grid according to the tariffs determined by the Authority and according to the rules defined in the criteria for additional distance.
• Bank guarantee - As a condition for receiving the "license in principle" and as
a control tool over the license owner, the Authority will determine, by law, a guarantee mechanism to be included as part of the license given to the entrepreneur so that the entrepreneur will be obliged to present a guarantee of 1% of the normative cost of the plant for the period of the license in principle until receiving the tariff approval. If the producer will not get to the stage of tariff approval (which is prior to the financial closing according to the milestones determined in the license), the guarantee will be returned in full. If the producer of the license did get to the stage of tariff approval before financial closing, the guarantee will be raised to 5% of the normative cost of the station; expiry of the license will lead to full forfeit of this guarantee.
The Israel Land Administration (ILA) decisions
• In order to encourage the construction of production plants using renewable
energy (including solar) on land available in the rural and agricultural settlement sector; I.L.A. reached a decision (number 1,162 from September 9th 2009) which, essentially, equates ventures in the field of energy production from renewables with other industrial or commercial ventures on ILA managed land within the borders of such settlements (decision no. 949 – Feb 2003).
• The decision determines that the rate of payment per land will be the same as
for industrial allocation. Alternative energy plants on top of existing rooftops of structures built with ILA approval will be exempt from payment.
• The ramifications of Decision 1,162 are that the renewable energy venture
must be carried out by the agricultural settlement (as a legal entity) or by a
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joint corporation in which the agricultural settlement owns 26% of the corporation's equity, at least.
• The decision, for the most part, relates to agricultural land, however the ILA
retains the right to allow such ventures, under similar terms to be carried out on land not designated as agricultural land.
• In decision 949 (from February 4th 2003, which was amended by decision
1,163 from September 9th 2008) – the maximum quotas for leasing of land for the purpose of industry in agricultural settlements were determined to be - 60 dunam in the middle of the country, 80 dunam in settlements in areas on national importance B and 120 dunam in settlements of national importance A.
• Since the area required for construction of solar based electrical plants are
greater that the areas mentioned above, it was decided that only 10% of the area of the project (and at the most 10% of the area of the project) will be considered as the land allocated to industry for the purposes of the quota.
• Therefore this decision does not pose a land restriction on the area available
for the construction of solar electricity production plants on agricultural land.
• The decision also includes mechanisms for authorizing the construction of
electricity producing plants in cases where the land quota allocated for industry has already been fulfilled. In addition, I.L.A. can approve the construction of national infrastructure plants not on agricultural land.
3- Financial support
In Israel, some mechanisms for financing renewable energy exist, such as feed-in tariffs for certain technologies (solar/wind). Feed-in premiums are available where there is no feed-in tariff arrangement. Also, the feed-in-tariff determination process with regard to biomass is approaching conclusion and there should be a feed-in-tariff in place in the very near future. There is also accelerated depreciation granted solar technologies. There is an obligatory purchase requirement on the utility for electricity generated by (PUA) licensed renewable generators, and the licenses are issued by the regulator (PUA), with Ministerial approval. In cases of residential solar arrays (rooftop – no greater than 15 kW capacity) – management is in the hands of the Utility. The national target will be filled essentially by private sector. Within this framework, facilities connected to transmission system (larger facilities), and the facilities connected to the distribution system (smaller facilities) have 20 year guaranteed tariff arrangements. Eligibility for support is across the spectrum of renewable sources and technologies. On the other hand, quotas and actual feed-in tariffs differ from one technology to another. Solar/Small Wind/Pumped storage have feed-in tariffs. Biomass, and large
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wind are covered by feed-in premiums (soon to be feed-in-tariff). Solar technologies also benefit from accelerated depreciation Remaining Quotas (Feed-in-tariff)
• Residential Small PV (<15 kW) (4.5 MW/193 Ag/kWh);
• Commercial Small PV(<50 kW) (27 MW/151 Ag/kWh);
• Medium PV (>51 kW) (50 MW/149 Ag/KWh);
• Thermo Solar (all sizes) (No capacity quota/87 Ag/kWh);
• Small Wind (15 kW) (15 MW/168 Ag/kWh);
• Medium Wind (15-50 kW) (15 MW/131 Ag/kWh).
This mechanism is to be operated until 2017, unless quotas are attained first. Quotas and feed-in tariffs can be coupled with another mechanism such as the tax incentives (accelerated depreciation) – where these exist.
4- Specific questions for investment
Regarding investment – subject to the fact that there are no technology oriented binding obligations, but technology oriented quotas and feed-in tariff schemes - the technologies that have been targeted for investment are:
• biomass (tariff to be published in the very near future),
• wind (small – large) (all on-shore): very small wind already has tariff, other
wind facilities will have tariff in the very near future.
The "rate cases" (requests for specific tariffs for specific technologies) have essentially come to the final leg of the procedure. As stated, incentives are "across the board"; quotas and scope of incentive can be technology or capacity specific. Production and deployment facilities not incentivised per se, except for solar producers who are eligible for accelerated depreciation. The aforesaid notwithstanding, national investment opportunities and incentives for industry are generally strong (R&D support is firmly in place). In terms of investment opportunities - applications are continuously received. Ground - mounted facilities might be subject to Israel Land Authority tendering procedures. However, it's has noted that the applications are processed only for so long as quotas are outstanding. Processing ceases when quotas are used up or expire. There is no assurance of additional quotas nor are they renewed on a regular, predictable basis.
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5- Specific questions for feed-in tariffs
In general, tariffs are a function of the technology and the capacity (sometimes, a combination of the factors). The tariff per licensed site is guarantee for 20 years. Tariffs are determined and are in effect until a pre-determined quota is attained or a time period evolves (the earlier of the two).Further, obtaining of the tariff fixed by the mechanism, requires certain conditions (see PUA Resolution No. 2, Meeting 325 of 24.1.2011, Addendum 3), such as:
• There must be a viable potential for connection to the Grid (High or Low
Voltage), financial soundness and the rights or "relationship" ("affinity") with a physical site (same as with producers of conventional energy). For purposes of financial soundness – the normative capital cost for a solar thermal facility was determined to be US$ 4,362/kW for facilities up to 60 MW capacity and US$ 4,049/kW for facilities exceeding 60 MW capacity;
• Only one grid connection available for each unit of land (as defined by PUA
• Meters must be placed at the generator and at the connection to the grid.
Readings (kWh generated and kWh fed into the grid) are to be taken on a half-hourly basis and reported daily;
• The producer must be duly licensed (either provisional license ("license in
In terms of technology, the tariff level for each technology is given of the following table: Feed-in Tariffs in Israel Solar Solar Produced Electricity from Facilities Connected to the Transmission Grid (Fossil Fuels < 3% of the Annual Electricity Production of the Facility) Size of the Facility
Tariff - Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh)
• Currency Conversion Factor: 1 Euro = NIS 4.96
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Solar Produced Electricity from Facilities Connected to the Transmission Grid, (Fossil Fuels > 3% of the Annual Electricity Production of the Facility) Size of the Facility
Tariff - Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh)
• No. of KWh attributed to fossil fuels- see below
RP >60
= The updated Tariff (Agorot/KWh) for facilities with an installed capacity of more than 60 MW
RP <60
= The updated Tariff (Agorot/KWh) for facilities with an installed capacity of up till 60 MW
TE – Amount of energy (no. of KWhs) generated by a facility as measured ex-generator FE – The number of KWhs attributable to fossil fuel consumption (as measured at the facility's fuel
meter) x (0.35) x (the LHV value for the relevant fossil fuels as in the table below)
Caloric Value (LHV) of Fossil Fuels Type of Fuel MMBtu/ton Recognized Price for Self-Production of Photoelectric Electricity where Excess Electricity is fed into the Grid Year in which Tariff for Customer/Member Customer/Member joined of the Arrangement the Arrangement
(Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh) Produced)
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Arrangement as per Resolution no.1 26.7.2010
*Residential facilities of a maximum installed capacity of 15 KW. The Quota for commercial
Wind
Beginning Tariff for wind turbine with a Tariff for wind turbine with a Tariff for wind turbine with a capacity up to 15 kW capacity of over 15 kW and capacity greater than 50 kW operation up to 50 kW Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh) Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh) Euro/kWh (Agorot per kWh) 6- Specific questions for feed-in premium
This mechanism is granted only in instances where there is no feed-in-tariff. The feed-in premium is uniform, licenses generally are capped for capacity and the premium price is guaranteed 20 years. The premiums are a calculation based on environmental values (i.e. contribution to mitigation of pollution factors, not only CO2). All conditions stated above regarding conventional and renewable producers apply to
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producers eligible for premiums. Wind and bio-mass are expected to have tariffs in the very near future- rate case process has almost been completed.
Premiums for Renewable Energy IPPs (Agorot/KWh)
(Available to IPPs who do not have a specific tariff – z.g.) Pp = Level of Particulates emissions of the Unit (g/kWh) PN = Level of NOx emissions of the Unit (g/kWh) Ps = Level of SOx emissions of the Unit (g/kWh) Pc = Level of CO2 emissions of the Unit (g/kWh) not including carbon neutral Premium (Agorot/KWh*) Particulates Classification Carbon Neutral Premium)
0.371-( Pp*4.152)
2.594-( PN*1.049)
4.133-( Ps*1.394)
2.559-( Pc*0.003)
0.475-( Pp*4.152)
1.197-( PN*1.049)
2.680-( Ps*1.394)
1.734-( Pc*0.003)
0.532-( Pp*4.152)
3.117-( PN*1.049)
1.653-( Ps*1.394)
2.821-( Pc*0.003) Transition
0.371-( Pp*4.152)
2.594-( PN*1.049)
4.133-( Ps*1.394)
2.559-( Pc*0.003)
0.475-( Pp*4.152)
1.197-( PN*1.049)
2.680-( Ps*1.394)
1.734-( Pc*0.003)
0.532-( Pp*4.152)
3.117-( PN*1.049)
1.653-( Ps*1.394)
2.821-( Pc*0.003)
0.371-( Pp*4.152)
2.594-( PN*1.049)
4.133-( Ps*1.394)
2.559-( Pc*0.003)
0.475-( Pp*4.152)
1.197-( PN*1.049)
2.680-( Ps*1.394)
1.734-( Pc*0.003)
0.532-( Pp*4.152)
3.117-( PN*1.049)
1.653-( Ps*1.394)
2.821-( Pc*0.003) * To convert to Euro – divide Agorot value by 4.96 7- Specific question for tendering
Tenders are infrequent (two tenders: Ashalim: 250 MW and Timna: 150 MW) and concern, essentially, the solar technologies. However, the siting of all generating facilities (irrespective of its type) must be approved for connectivity to the Grid. Without that approval, the facility cannot get a license. The government of Israel has determined that wind energy would be developed with a target for 2014 of 800 MW. The procedure for identifying new sites (aside from sites that have already been identified by various investigators) is expected to be that the Ministry of National Infrastructures (MNI) will, in coordination with the Israel Lands Authority and the PUA (the regulator of the electricity sector) issue a Call for
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Proposals whereunder entrepreneurs shall propose various sites for wind development. The proposals accepted would lead to a situation where the entrepreneur will be granted the right to do a study on the site (erect a stdy pylon or pylons). Should the site prove feasible, the entrepreneur would be granted the right of first refusal to develop the site under terms to be fixed (possibly as a component of the Call for Proposals). The MNI is planning to create a new Wind Atlas to more clearly identify areas viable for wind farms. The Ministry of Interior (the Ministry responsible for Statutory Planning in Israel) has recently issued a policy document relating to the planning issues dealing with wind energy. These issues are technical ones and are applicable to all sites. There are 150-200 MW of wind in relatively advanced stages of planning in the Golan heights (already with provisional Licenses) and an additional approx. 100 MW slated for the Golan Heights now in statutory planning stages. These farms are slated for private land. There is a plethora of additional potential sites for wind power - various areas of the Galillee (the Gilboa area, Sirin Plateau), the Bet Shean Valley, the Negev (Mitzpe Ramon, Arad) and there has even been talk of areas in the Arava (south eastern Israel), as well as the border area with the Sinai Penninsula. Israel does not yet know, where its wind power truly lies and has no a priori preference for the Golan Heights - which present a number of site specific problems (bird migration, outer edge of the grid, border problems with Syria).
8- Constraints for renewable energy development
Like in other countries, Israel faces significant financial constraints to support the implementation of projects. The country, however, has established a well designed framework for RE development, allowing feed-in tariffs and third party access. Another constraint for RE development in Israel is the lack of interconnections with neighboring countries (apart from Gaza/West Bank), which, at present, does not enable exporting RE within the region and, eventually, to the EU. Israel has created a regulatory framework to allow for the import of electricity from the region. There was a private initiative to create generation capacity in a neighboring country and offer some energy to Israel. The venture was abandoned for reasons known only to the promoters. Israel participates in MEDRING, and will insist that all countries in the region (including the Palestinian Authority) be interconnected to that grid.
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Network issues In Israel, there is no special regulation in place regarding grid development concerning renewables. Grid development and planning (statutory requirements for construction) are all covered by the same regulations (Note: these are regulations promulgated under the statutory planning regulations under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Interior). In Israel, the infrastructure projects have a special process for statutory approval – applications are dealt with by a special planning team with broader experience than the local teams responsible for approving local construction. In terms of the reinforcement of the interconnection capacity with neighboring countries, there was an initiative to sell electricity generated in Jordan to Israel and there were regulations prepared to allow for the import. The initiative was abandoned as mentioned above, but in principle, the regulatory basis is available. For the priority connection to the grid, there is a special provision regarding the tariff charged to a renewable energy facility which is remotely located. A conventional facility would be charged with the full cost of transmission connection – the renewable facility is only charged if above the distance from the grid stated in the relevant ruling of the Regulator. The question about connection costs and technical adaptation are all part of the tariff published and operating standards set by the regulator. Also, all requests are processed through the regulator for ensured that transmission and distribution system operators provide new producers wishing to be connected with the necessary information on costs, a precise timetable for processing their requests and an indicative timetable for their grid connection.
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A Recap of the January 28, 2013 Regular Board Meeting At the January 28 Regular Board Meeting, the Volunteer Report Board approved the following routine personnel ac-The Board acknowledged the contributions of more than 150 parent and community volunteers in our schools. Resignations/Retirements Nancy Sue Holland, aide, TEMS, effective Under Priority Discussion
Treatment of Intestinal Worms in Broiler Breeders July 2008 Summary Provided by Dr. Suzanne Young, Aviagen and Dr. James Dawe, Bayer Animal Health In recent years, all FDA approved intestinal worm treatments administered in poultry feed have been withdrawn from the US market. This left the industry dependent on piperazine, the only water administered deworming drug appr
Paving the Way for the 
Description of the electric power sector 
Israel Electric Corporation 
- Section 2 of the Electricity Sector Law defines the term "activity" as follows: "Each of the following: power production, transmission, distribution, supply or trade." Government Resolutions
After enacting the Electricity Sector Law, the government passed several resolutions with respect to independent power production, intended to enable entrepreneurs in the free market to invest in the construction and operation of power stations. Following is a list of some of the government resolutions pertaining to the electricity sector: - Government Resolution No. 2472 dated August 13, 1997 – the «Electricity Sector" – sets forth the principles for the electricity market, namely: increasing power production capacity by issuing licenses to IPPs, publishing tenders and granting licenses pursuant to the aforesaid purposes of the law. - Government Resolution No. 4155 dated August 12, 1998 – "Government Policy Concerning Electricity Generation". This resolution primarily governs the issue of power generation licenses to IPPs interested in selling power to non-vital service providers (i.e. not to IEC) without a tender, according to a quota and threshold conditions to be set forth by the Minister of National Infrastructures. - Government Resolution No. 123 dated August 22, 1999 – "Integration of IPPs in the Electricity Sector" – sets forth several principles dealing with the regulation of the sale of electric power to IEC (vital service provider); determining a quota for independent production using cogeneration technology; publishing a tender for IPPs; locating areas for private power stations. At that same session, the government decided to pass Resolution 125 "Electricity Sector – Sectorial Structure Supporting Competition". - Indeed, in the wake of Resolution 123 a joint team was appointed under the auspices of the Ministry of National Infrastructures, the Ministry of Finance and the State-owned Companies Authority. The team engaged the services of the international consulting firm, Deloitte & Touche. - Government Resolution No. 2184 dated August 16, 2000, further to the preceding resolutions, dealt with the preparation of land reserves for IPPs, the publishing of additional tenders and raising the production quota using cogeneration technology. - Resolution No. MK/43 of the Ministerial Committee for Corporate and Financial Affairs (Social-Economic Cabinet) dated November 4, 2002 – "Policy for Power Production by IPPs", in which the government regulated the issue of power generation licenses to IPPs. That same resolution determines, inter alia, that IPPs interested in selling electric power to entities other than Israel Electric Corp. could obtain an independent production license to do so, subject to conditions to be set forth by the Minister of National Infrastructures, provided that the plans are approved under the Planning and Construction Law.
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Electricity Sector (Conventional Independent Power Producer) Regulations, 5765-2004
In the aim of encouraging the construction and operation of IPP facilities consistent with the principles of minimizing production costs in the production sector and encouraging the sale of electric power by IPPs, the Minister of National Infrastructures enacted the Electricity Sector (Conventional Independent Producer) Regulations. These regulations determined a mechanism where an IPP could require IEC to purchase available production capacity for a payment equal to 80% of the normative cost of the production unit (an objective cost to be determined by the Electricity Authority) for each megawatt of available supply capacity that it provides IEC and 100% of the fixed operating and maintenance costs for each megawatt of available supply capacity. This mechanism serves in fact as a sort of "safety net" to guarantee full payment of the debt in case the producer does not sell the station's full capacity or part thereof. The regulations add that where the producer provides available production capacity to IEC, the producer may be obligated to provide electricity to the national grid at a fixed rate to be determined by the Electricity Authority, and this may reflect the production cost. The regulations also provide that from the date a production component or the normative cost is determined, as the case may be, in accordance with which the IPP enters into a transaction, and to back up the confidence of the IPP, no changes shall be made in the production component or the normative cost, as the case may be, for that IPP, except for the regular update of the components of the production component or the normative cost, as determined by the Electricity Authority.
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Support schemes to promote the use of energy from 
procedures for granting electricity production licenses for RE projects. Among energy 
• August 1998 - the Government decided "to act to advance the development of
technologies for efficient usage of alternative energies and thereby reduce the dependency on imported fuel and reduce environmental pollution." An inter-departmental committee was established for the purpose of formulating administrative and legislative means for promoting the use of alternative energies, to offer projects in the field and recommend ways of combining local and foreign investors.
• November 2002 - the Government reached a decision to encourage the
construction and operation of electricity plants and power stations, which operate on renewable energies by private electricity producers. In addition, this decision included targets for the volume of electricity production using renewable energies: from 2007, up to 2% of the electricity produced for consumers will be from renewable energy plants. This rate will be increased by 1% every six years, so that by 2016 electricity produced from such plants will be up to 5% of the electricity supplied to consumers.
• August 2007 - the Government reached a decision regarding removing
obstructions from the energy market. The decision was, amongst other things, to form an inter-departmental team to remove obstructions from promoting projects for generating electricity using solar power, and it was determined that two solar power stations will be constructed at the Ashalim site with a capacity of 200 to 250 MW.
• March 2008 - the Government decided that tenders will be published for the
construction of thermo-solar power plants with a capacity of 80 to 125 Megawatts at Ashalim for stage 2; an additional tender will be published for construction of photo-voltaic power stations with a capacity of 15MW and the country will reserve itself the possibility to construct an additional photo-voltaic power plant with a capacity of 15 MW.
• August 2008 - the Government decided that the planning authority together
with the Ministry of National Infrastructure will promote the preparation of a national outline plan for the energy market's infrastructure (NOP 41), which will also address the field of renewable energy, including amongst other things defining conditions for location, construction and operation of projects for electricity production from the main types of renewable energy sources. The CEO of the Ministry of Environmental Protection will act to consolidate environmental guiding principles for the planning of projects in the field of renewable energy, which will, amongst other things, assist in speeding up planning procedures for projects in this field.
• January 2009 - the Government ratified the decision of the socio-economic
cabinet determining a guiding target and consolidating tools to promote renewable energies, especially in the Negev and Arava areas. This decision included new targets for the volume of electricity to be produced by renewable energies, which update those of 2002.
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• January 2010 - the Israeli Public Utilities Authorities (PUA) decided to regulate
feed-in tariffs, standards, licensing procedures for medium sized solar facilities with a capacity larger than 50 kW with a feed-in tariff of NIS 1.49. The regulation is to be in place until achieving a goal of 300 MW of nationwide implementation until the end of 2017, or the completion of the quota, whichever is achieved first. It is to be understood that 10% (30 MW) of this regulation will be offered to other than PV renewable energy technologies. The mentioned tariff will be reduced by 5% per annum from 2012 up to 2014. From 2014 the tariff will remain constant until the quota is exhausted.
Accordingly, the Authority will update its decisions regarding the definition of normative value for a photo-voltaic station.
• Experience in the field - When examining the fundamental request for a
license, the professional team will, according to its discretion, examine various parameters of the application submission which indicate the entrepreneur's previous experience in the field, including whether the technology fulfils the criteria of photo-voltaic plants. It is not the Authority's intention to place limitations in front of technological advances, but at the same time, the entrepreneur will be required to prove experience in the field which indicates the seriousness of the request. The professional team will not disqualify a request before providing the entrepreneur with an opportunity to present his point of view.
• Connecting to the grid - The requestor of the license will provide the Authority
with a document from the ESP ("Essential Service Provider" – presently IEC) for connecting to the electricity grid according to the tariffs determined by the Authority and according to the rules defined in the criteria for additional distance.
• Bank guarantee - As a condition for receiving the "license in principle" and as
a control tool over the license owner, the Authority will determine, by law, a guarantee mechanism to be included as part of the license given to the entrepreneur so that the entrepreneur will be obliged to present a guarantee of 1% of the normative cost of the plant for the period of the license in principle until receiving the tariff approval. If the producer will not get to the stage of tariff approval (which is prior to the financial closing according to the milestones determined in the license), the guarantee will be returned in full. If the producer of the license did get to the stage of tariff approval before financial closing, the guarantee will be raised to 5% of the normative cost of the station; expiry of the license will lead to full forfeit of this guarantee.
The Israel Land Administration (ILA) decisions
• In order to encourage the construction of production plants using renewable
energy (including solar) on land available in the rural and agricultural settlement sector; I.L.A. reached a decision (number 1,162 from September 9th 2009) which, essentially, equates ventures in the field of energy production from renewables with other industrial or commercial ventures on ILA managed land within the borders of such settlements (decision no. 949 – Feb 2003).
• The decision determines that the rate of payment per land will be the same as
for industrial allocation. Alternative energy plants on top of existing rooftops of structures built with ILA approval will be exempt from payment.
• The ramifications of Decision 1,162 are that the renewable energy venture
must be carried out by the agricultural settlement (as a legal entity) or by a
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joint corporation in which the agricultural settlement owns 26% of the corporation's equity, at least.
• The decision, for the most part, relates to agricultural land, however the ILA
retains the right to allow such ventures, under similar terms to be carried out on land not designated as agricultural land.
• In decision 949 (from February 4th 2003, which was amended by decision
1,163 from September 9th 2008) – the maximum quotas for leasing of land for the purpose of industry in agricultural settlements were determined to be - 60 dunam in the middle of the country, 80 dunam in settlements in areas on national importance B and 120 dunam in settlements of national importance A.
• Since the area required for construction of solar based electrical plants are
greater that the areas mentioned above, it was decided that only 10% of the area of the project (and at the most 10% of the area of the project) will be considered as the land allocated to industry for the purposes of the quota.
• Therefore this decision does not pose a land restriction on the area available
for the construction of solar electricity production plants on agricultural land.
• The decision also includes mechanisms for authorizing the construction of
electricity producing plants in cases where the land quota allocated for industry has already been fulfilled. In addition, I.L.A. can approve the construction of national infrastructure plants not on agricultural land.
3- Financial support 
wind are covered by feed-in premiums (soon to be feed-in-tariff). Solar technologies also benefit from accelerated depreciation Remaining Quotas (Feed-in-tariff)
• Residential Small PV (<15 kW) (4.5 MW/193 Ag/kWh); 
5- Specific questions for feed-in tariffs 
Solar Produced Electricity from Facilities Connected to the Transmission Grid, (Fossil Fuels > 3% of 
Arrangement as per Resolution no.1 26.7.2010
*Residential facilities of a maximum installed capacity of 15 KW. The Quota for commercial
Wind 
producers eligible for premiums. Wind and bio-mass are expected to have tariffs in the very near future- rate case process has almost been completed.
Premiums for Renewable Energy IPPs (Agorot/KWh) 
Proposals whereunder entrepreneurs shall propose various sites for wind development. The proposals accepted would lead to a situation where the entrepreneur will be granted the right to do a study on the site (erect a stdy pylon or pylons). Should the site prove feasible, the entrepreneur would be granted the right of first refusal to develop the site under terms to be fixed (possibly as a component of the Call for Proposals). The MNI is planning to create a new Wind Atlas to more clearly identify areas viable for wind farms. The Ministry of Interior (the Ministry responsible for Statutory Planning in Israel) has recently issued a policy document relating to the planning issues dealing with wind energy. These issues are technical ones and are applicable to all sites. There are 150-200 MW of wind in relatively advanced stages of planning in the Golan heights (already with provisional Licenses) and an additional approx. 100 MW slated for the Golan Heights now in statutory planning stages. These farms are slated for private land. There is a plethora of additional potential sites for wind power - various areas of the Galillee (the Gilboa area, Sirin Plateau), the Bet Shean Valley, the Negev (Mitzpe Ramon, Arad) and there has even been talk of areas in the Arava (south eastern Israel), as well as the border area with the Sinai Penninsula. Israel does not yet know, where its wind power truly lies and has no a priori preference for the Golan Heights - which present a number of site specific problems (bird migration, outer edge of the grid, border problems with Syria).
8- Constraints for renewable energy development 
Network issues