Israel Pushing for More Solar Power

Israel’s Public Utilities Authority has announced a new initiative aimed at boosting the volume of solar power produced in the country. The authority announced on Wednesday that it would boost volume of solar power the government is willing to buy, while reducing by 25 percent the rate it would pay solar power producers from 2.04 shekel [53 cents] to 1.55 shekels [40 cents] per kilowatt hour. Israel incentivizes the production of renewable energy by paying an enhanced rate to producers who pump energy from renewable sources into Israel’s electrical grid, thereby forcing the authority to limit the volume of renewable energy it can afford to buy. The move comes a few months after Israel’s National Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau announced that 10 percent of Israel’s energy needs will come from renewable sources such as wind and solar power by 2020. To meet the goal, Israel must install enough renewable energy infrastructure to produce over 4,000 megawatts hours of power.
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