Tel Aviv [Israel]: Over the past two years (2022-23), Israel’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure provided more than 90 local authorities with grants totaling over 130 million Shekels (USD 36 million) to promote sustainable energy.
Most recently, 37 local authorities received grants totaling approximately 56 million Shekels (USD 15.2 million) that the ministry said will lead to the implementation of over 100 additional projects for “energy efficiency, renewable energy production and energy independence in local authority properties and in the domestic and commercial sectors.”
A significant part of the budget is intended for energy storage for emergencies and 80 per cent of the budget was directed to authorities from the periphery (remote parts of the country) and minority sectors.
28 Arab local authorities received grants in the amount of approximately 26 million Shekels (USD 7 million).
The ministry stated that this year, due to the “Iron Swords” war, as part of the grants, emphasis was placed on energy storage projects to promote energy independence and resilience. About 45 per cent of the budget for grants to implement action plans was allocated to energy storage projects and in total, storage facilities will be established in dozens of facilities and public institutions.
Energy storage is important in times of emergency to ensure the functional continuity of essential facilities in local authorities and also contributes to the decentralisation of energy production in Israel’s electricity sector.
