{"id":2925,"date":"2020-07-21T14:50:25","date_gmt":"2020-07-21T14:50:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/?p=2925"},"modified":"2020-07-21T14:50:52","modified_gmt":"2020-07-21T14:50:52","slug":"is-israel-really-a-world-power-of-renewable-energies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/weather-climate\/is-israel-really-a-world-power-of-renewable-energies\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Israel Really a World Power of Renewable Energies?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Solar Energy in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Pfw_6jZvzLU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>According to a recently published <a href=\"https:\/\/iea-pvps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/IEA_PVPS_Snapshot_2020.pdf\">annual report<\/a> by the International Energy Agency (IEA), Israel came first among the OECD countries in solar energy generation out of total electricity consumption. At the end of 2019, Israel&#8217;s solar energy production was at 8.7 percent, positioning the country in second place worldwide, only after Honduras.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s start\nwith the fact that there is definitely room to give positive reinforcement to\nthe State of Israel for its energy achievements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In recent\nyears, Israel has finally switched to the construction of renewable energy\nfacilities (mainly photovoltaic installations) and is building these facilities\nat a higher rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This\npositive change has also occurred due to the easing of national regulations,\nlower prices, continuous improvement in solar panel efficiency, and thanks to\ndirecting funding to the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, Israel is on the verge of meeting its target of producing 10 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by the end of 2020. However, alongside the compliments, we must also ask what is really behind the positive data: Is this a real achievement?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Can we rest on the laurels given to us? Is Israel leading humanity in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing climate change, reducing air pollution, and eliminating the dependency on nonrenewable resources?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"468\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-1024x468.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2934\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-1024x468.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-300x137.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-768x351.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-1536x702.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/science-in-hd-ZNS6rizp9RU-unsplash-2048x936.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>At the end of 2019, Israel&#8217;s solar energy production was at 8.7 percent, positioning the country in second place worldwide, only after Honduras. Photo by Science in HD on Unsplash<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Unfortunately,\nthe answers are not so flattering to Israel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As already mentioned,\nthe outstanding achievement stated in the articles that discuss the ranking is\nthe optimal rate of solar energy generation out of the country&#8217;s total\nelectricity consumption (No thermal systems, like the Concentrated Solar Power\nfacility in Ashalim, or solar water heaters).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The fact\nthat Israel is ranked second in the world after Honduras suggests that reality\nis more complicated. Honduras is a third world state in Latin America, ranked\nin the lower third of the world by many economic, social, and health\nindicators. So how is it possible that such a country leads the world in an\nindex that looks so innovative and groundbreaking?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are\nseveral factors to this: Most OECD countries are located in temperate climate\nzones (with more water and wind resources and less solar radiation) and thus\nrely more on wind energy, hydroelectric energy, and heat energy from biomass or\nwaste burning as major sources of renewable energy. In these countries, solar\nradiation is generally lower, and annual solar hours are lower than in Israel\n(and in Honduras). In Israel, a solar panel receives about <a href=\"file:\/\/\/Users\/dominikdohler\/Desktop\/In%20Israel,%20a%20solar%20panel%20receives%20about%20120-40%20percent%20more%20annual%20sun%20radiation%20than%20the%20same%20panel%20in%20a%20temperate%20climate.\">120-40 percent<\/a> more annual sun radiation than the\nsame panel in a temperate climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Israel, the most abundant and lucrative renewable energy source is solar energy. There is not much wind in Israel and of course, there is no running water in quantities relevant to hydroelectric energy production. Therefore, in today&#8217;s technology landscape, Israel is left to use primarily solar energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In order to\nsee behind the curtain, one has to look at all the renewable energy sources\nthat generate electricity. Such an examination will show us that 27 percent of\nelectricity consumed in the OECD countries comes from renewable energy, while\nin Israel, it&#8217;s only about 9 percent (as of the end of 2019).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moreover, the leading OECD countries in this index, Iceland and Norway generate ten times more renewable energy than Israel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2926\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/48321009906_9e5d987125_o-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>The Ashalim Solar Power Station in the Negev desert in Israel. Photo by Mussi Katz on Flickr<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>But\nelectricity is only part of the story<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Looking at\nthe total production and energy consumption in the country (including\ntransport, heating, cooling, industry), it becomes apparent that by the end of\n2019, only 6-5 percent of all energy use in Israel came from renewable energy\nsources. While the average among the OECD countries stands at 11 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is\nbecause Israel produces renewable energy that is almost exclusively limited to\nsolar water heaters (and some biogas and waste incineration), while many OECD\ncountries are widely used to heat buildings through renewable sources (biogas,\nThermo-solar, geothermal, waste incinerator heat and biomass). Therefore, when\nlooking at the Israeli energy sector as a whole, great work is still ahead of\nus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If we had\nreached the current achievement a decade ago, or even five years ago,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This could\nindeed be a reason for partying and pride in Israeli innovation and leading the\nworld in the field. The truth is, however, that Israel is lagging far behind\nthe developed world (and even some developing countries) in terms of the use of\nrenewable energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To play its part in combating the climate crisis and reducing pollution and environmental damage, Israel must reach at least 50 percent of electricity generation from renewable sources by 2030. The progress made in Israel in recent years (and similar achievements that seem to have fallen short in Egypt, Vietnam, and other countries) shows that ambitious targets can be reached, with the right policies and incentives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A crucial\nstep in achieving these goals is the cessation of natural gas production. Gas\ndependence is a step we will find difficult to overcome in the future and one\nthat prevents Israel from significantly reducing its greenhouse gas emissions\nin the coming decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\ntransition from coal and oil to natural gas, even if it improves the quality of\nthe air we breathe, we do not reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally,\nnatural gas and its infrastructure, such as transmission lines and gas stations\nnear the cities, come at the expense of long-term investments in renewable\nenergy and other low-carbon solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If Israel\nwants to rank high (and true) in the use of renewable energy, it must allocate\nlarger budgets and encourage large-scale investments in the field of renewable\nenergy, promote significant energy storage, promote the establishment of a\nsmart electricity grid and invest in research and development in the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Dr. Daniel Madar is a researcher and consultant in the fields of energy, environment, and government.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This ZAVIT article was also published in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.jpost.com\/opinion\/israel-not-yet-world-power-in-renewable-energies-634747\">The Jerusalem Post<\/a>\u00a0on 07\/12\/2020.<\/em><br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>According to a recently published annual report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), Israel came first among the OECD countries &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":2938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"post-meta-fields":{"_edit_lock":["1595343155:11"],"_thumbnail_id":["2938"],"_edit_last":["11"],"subtitle":["Why is Israel ranked first among OECD countries in the rate of solar power generation from the economy\u2019s total electricity consumption? A look at the fine print of the Israeli energy market"],"_subtitle":["field_59d3d36ea7fe1"],"_wpml_media_duplicate":["1"],"_wpml_media_featured":["1"],"_oembed_a8181cc42ca4f6a083fe629a7816c9b6":["<iframe title=\"Solar Energy in Israel\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Pfw_6jZvzLU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>"],"_oembed_time_a8181cc42ca4f6a083fe629a7816c9b6":["1595342907"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2925"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2925"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2925\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2946,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2925\/revisions\/2946"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}