Conference to highlight Jewish community's response to energy challenges

Young professionals will gather in San Francisco next month for a conference featuring cleantech entrepreneurs, investors and policymakers.

The goal of the Jewish Response to the Energy Challenge conference, scheduled for November 8th, is to "share ideas and experiences that will advance a generational movement for clean and secure energy."

The conference agenda features keynote speakers and breakout sessions on U.S.-Israel energy cooperation, transportation, clean economy, policy reform, and sustainability.

Confirmed speakers include:

Alan Salzman, CEO VantagePoint Venture Partners
Adam Werbach, CEO Saatchi and Saatchi
Jason Wolf, Head of Better Place California
Yosef Abramowitz, Co-Founder Arava Power Company
David Arfin, VP Strategy Solar City
JB Straubel, CTO Tesla Motors
Joel Makower, Executive Director, GreenBiz.com
Sanjay Wagle, Special Advisor, DOE Recovery Team
Anne Korin, Chair, Set America Free Coalition

I am pleased to be moderating the panel on U.S.-Israel energy cooperation, which will feature the following panelists:

Arthur Haubenstock, General Counsel, BrightSource Energy
Eitan Yudelevich, Executive Director, BIRD Foundation
Matan Friedman, Senior Associate, Bessemer Venture Partners
Sagi Rubin, Associate, Virgin Green Fund
Martin Kace, Founder and President, Empax

Registration for the conference is required.

I hope to see you next month in San Francisco!

Siemens invests $15mm in Israeli solar company Arava Power

Siemens, the German industrial giant, recently announced a $15 million investment in Arava Power Company, a company developing solar power plants in Israel.

An agreement was signed at Kibbutz Ketura in August, securing Siemens a 40 percent stake in the company. Arava Power develops, builds and operates photovoltaic plants in Israel. “This investment is another consequential step in further strengthening our green and sustainable technologies,” said Peter Löscher, President and CEO of Siemens AG. “Thanks to its intensive sunshine and steadily growing demand for energy, Israel is an ideal location for further developing our solar business.” The equity investment will make it possible to build Israel’s first commercial solar farms – to be located in the region between the Dead Sea and the Red Sea.

The investment is aimed at constructing the solar fields with a significant proportion of Siemens know-how, delivering technology, e.g. inverter and transformers, ensuring new projects for the group. As Engineering Procurement Construction (EPC) contractor, Siemens will handle project management including engineering and construction of the photovoltaic plants. Overall, Siemens has concluded a framework agreement to build solar plants with a total output of 40 megawatts (MW). The first project will be the construction of a plant with an output of up to 4.9 MW at Kibbutz Ketura, in the southern desert of Israel. Additional photovoltaic plants are already being planned for the Negev and Arava deserts and Israel’s aim is to meet around ten percent of its total energy needs with renewable energy plants by 2020.

Arava Power, the Israeli development company, was founded in 2006 and is headquartered at Kibbutz Ketura, north of Eilat. The company, with some 20 employees, is a subsidiary of Global Sun Power Ltd. Siemens is investing in Arava Power through its equity investment company Siemens Project Ventures GmbH (SPV).

“This is the most comprehensive foreign investment to date for an Israeli solar energy firm,” said Johannes Schmidt, CEO of the Equity & Project Finance unit of Siemens Financial Services. “Through its early and extensive engagement in the field, Arava Power has developed into Israel’s leading solar energy company. Siemens will be supporting local solar projects with our full range of technologies, know-how and finance.”

Jonathan Cohen, CEO of Arava Power, added: “Siemens is the ideal partner for Arava Power and our property partners for winning over others interested in producing solar energy in Israel. Our strategic partnership will make it possible for our country to reach its ambitious goals of clean air and renewable energy even faster.”

Founded by a group of visionaries at Kibbutz Ketura, Arava Power Company seeks to supply 10% of Israel’s electricity needs with the development of solar energy plants with Kibbutzim, Moshavim and other land owners, especially in the south of Israel.

Yosef Abramowitz, Arava Power Company's Co-Founder and President, was recently profiled in Ha'aretz.

Related Posts:

Arava Power solar project approved for Negev kibbutz

"A Renewable Light Unto the Nations"

Renewable energy park to be built in Arava Valley

Arava Power solar project approved for Negev kibbutz

Israel's Public Utilities Authority (Electricity) has approved the application of Arava Power Company for a license to build a 4.9-megawatt solar power plant at an 20-acre site at Kibbutz Ketura in the Negev. The project will cost NIS 100 million ($26 million), according to a report in Globes, and will use both photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal technologies.

The Public Utilities Authority plenum approved the conditional license for Arava Power to produce electricity, and sent it to Minister of National Infrastructures Benjamin Ben-Eliezer.

"This is an historic day for renewable energy in Israel," Arava Power Company president Yosef Abramowitz said in a statement. "For the first time, a large solar project is being launched that will be connected to the national grid, with many more megawatts on the way in the coming years. The Public Utility Authority is making a reality Ben-Eliezer's dramatic decision to produce thousands of megawatts of electricity from renewable sources by 2020."

The first solar installation of 100 kilowatts will be built by Edig Solar, according to the Jerusalem Post. Edig Solar uses solar thermal technology developed at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot. The plant is expected to become operational in March.

Arava Power has signed cooperation agreements with 15 kibbutzim, including Ketura and Yotvata, that own land available sufficient for the production of up to 500 megawatts of electricity at photovoltaic farms. The company predicts that a total of over 20 kibbutzim will join the venture this year.

Kibbutz Ketura owns 40% of Arava Power, and a group of US investors, led by company president Yossi Abramowitz, own the rest. Arava Power plans on announcing its brand-name institutional investors by February 1st, 2009.

Related Posts:

"A Renewable Light Unto the Nations"

Renewable energy park to be built in Arava Valley

Edig Solar provides hybrid solution for cloudy days

US & Israel to launch energy cooperation agreement at Eilat Energy Conference

The Eilat-Eilot International Renewable Energy Conference announced that the US-Israel Energy Cooperation Act, passed last year by the U.S. Congress, is expected to launch at the upcoming Eilat-Eilot energy conference, to be held from February 17-19, 2009, in Eilat, Israel.

The cooperation act will fund eligible joint ventures between U.S. and Israeli businesses, as well as establish the International Energy Advisory Board. Hezi Kugler, Director General of the Ministry of National Infrastructures will be leading the delegation of National Infrastructure representatives who will be in attendance at the conference.

“The Ministry of National Infrastructures views with high import the development of the Eilat-Eilot Region as a center of renewable energy solutions, and we not only fully support them in this pursuit, but we ourselves are very involved in advancing their initiatives,” Kugler said. “The conference is an important step towards developing the alternative energy capabilities of this region, and will certainly push us forward in becoming an alternative energy world leader.”

Timna Renewable Energy Park

The conference will also feature the unveiling of plans for the Timna Renewable Energy Park, the centerpiece of the Eilat-Eilot region’s efforts to turn Southern Israel into the “Silicon Valley” of renewable energy. It will feature technologies from companies around the world, with planned projects to include a combined wind/solar "farm"; a solar thermal power plant; a solarized turbine pilot plant and the production of biogas from municipal waste.

"The Arava is home to intense sun and a pioneering spirit, which are the necessary ingredients for creating a renewable energy revolution in the State of Israel", said Yosef I. Abramowitz, president of the Arava Power Company, a leading solar developer.

Leading Solar Power Companies

Participating Israeli solar companies, including the Arava Power Company (APC), Solar Power Israel and Sunday Solar Energy, intend on using the conference to launch their next phases of growth. Recently, APC announced an agreement to utilize kibbutz land in the Arava and the Negev for solar fields generating at least 500 MW, and eventually one gigawatt (GW) or more, while energy integrator Sunday Solar Energy announced a NIS 500 million ($133 million USD) investment in photovoltaic solar arrays for kibbutzim across Israel. The investment is expected to be made across the country during the next two years.

The conference will also feature international firms such as the Google-backed eSolar, the German company Concentrix and SunPower, one of the world’s largest solar power technologies companies.

Conference sponsors include Brightsource Energy, Chromagen, Granite HaCarmel and Erdinast, Ben Nathan & Co. Advocates.

Cleantech attracts foreign investment

"From cutting-edge geothermal power deep underground to wind turbines and solar panels capturing energy from the sky above, foreign investors are pouring money into Israel's growing clean tech sector."

This is the opening paragraph in an article recently published by the Jewish Journal of Los Angeles.

The article provides an overview of Israel's cleantech sector and focuses on the importance of the United States, both as an export market for clean technologies and a source of funds for cleantech VCs and startups.

It includes quotes from Michael Granoff, President of NY-based Maniv Energy Capital and an investor in Project Better Place; David Rosenblatt, Vice Chairman of the Arava Power Company; Glen Schwaber, Partner at Israel Cleantech Ventures; Stacy Schusterman, CEO of the Samson Investment Co. and a major Jewish philanthropist; Assaf Barnea, CEO of the Kinrot Water Technology Incubator; and Jonathan Shapira, the author of this blog.

If you want to meet Assaf Barnea and learn more about water technologies in Israel, please sign up for the Cleantech Israel business network and attend our next event on July 29.

"A Renewable Light Unto the Nations"

Yossi Abramowitz, President of the Arava Power Company, just published a new essay entitled "A Renewable Light Unto the Nations". I highly recommend reading it.

Abramowitz calls for Israel to set a goal of generating 40% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020, and thus "capture the imagination of youth, entrepreneurs, scientists, philanthropists, and financiers." He also suggests the creation of a "World Jewish Action Plan" to offer "Jews and Jewish institutions worldwide carbon offset opportunities" in Israel.

In practice, this would involve "every synagogue, JCC, school, and institution" calculating its carbon footprint, and then putting solar panels on its own roof and investing in Israeli renewable science centers or companies.

I hope that groups like the newly established "Boston Israel Cleantech Alliance" and the California Israel Chamber of Commerce's "Cleantech Initiative" can play a leading role in putting renewable energy on the Jewish community's agenda and promoting connections between cleantech investors and entrepreneurs in the United States and Israel.

In related news, Israel's Public Utilities Authority approved a plan Monday to buy electricity, at NIS 2.01 per kilowatt, from individuals and companies who install a photovoltaic (PV) solar panel system on their roofs. Israel thus joins a growing list of countries, including Germany, the US, Japan and Spain, that have approved such solar "feed-in tariffs".

"Ex-VC" Tali Aben explains the economics of the feed-in tariff, observing that those who install solar PV systems are now set to reap a 14% internal rate of return on their investment over a 20 year period.

According to the Jerusalem Post, National Infrastructures Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer called on the Authority to draft similar tariffs for household wind energy, which would be good news for Israeli companies like TechnoSpin, Coriolis Wind, and ALT-E.

Related Posts:

Renewable energy park to be built in Arava Valley

JTA: "Israeli firms invest in clean tech"

The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) just published a lengthy article on the cleantech scene in Israel. JTA articles are often republished in local Jewish newspapers around the world, and it is nice to see Israel’s cleantech sector getting publicity in the Diaspora.

I am quoted in the article -- as the author of this blog and an organizer of the Cleantech Israel meetup group -- alongside industry players including Dov Raviv (CEO of MST), Yael Cohen-Paran (Director of the Israel Energy Forum), Yossi Abramowitz (Chairman of the Arava Power Company), Prof. David Faiman of Ben-Gurion University, and Dr. Isaac Berzin (Founder of GreenFuel Technologies).

The entire article is available online. Here is the section that includes my quote:

"Turning Israel into a center for clean technology could build new bridges between Israel and Diaspora Jews, says Jonathan Shapira, a recent American law school graduate living in Tel Aviv who organizes monthly meetings for entrepreneurs interested in clean tech and writes a blog on the subject.

As an example, Shapira cited the business park for renewable energy firms being built in the Arava with funding from Toronto's Jewish community.

"Rather than just making a charitable donation, people are helping create the infrastructure for economic growth and a cleaner environment in Israel," Shapira said."

Solar Roundup

What follows is a selection of recent stories and links related to the solar industry in Israel.

Arava planning $2.5 billion solar power station

An international project management firm recently signed a memorandum of understanding for construction of a $2.5 billion solar power station in the Eilot Region in the Arava desert. The project, which is expected to develop over a five-year period, involves installation of photovoltaic (PV) panels that will eventually supply up to 500 megawatts of electricity. The agreement was signed by the Arava Power Company of Kibbutz Ketura located in the southern Arava.

SolarPower raises $1.1m

Photovoltaic energy system integration company SolarPower Israel has raised $1.1 million at a company value of a few million dollars from Precede Technologies and Rosenram Development Ltd. The company plans to use the funding to expand its business in Israel and internationally.

SolarPower co-CEOs Avinoam Levy and Alon Tamari founded the company in 2003. The company anticipates rapid growth in Israel's photovoltaic energy market following an update to the Electricity Regulations to allow the government to buy electricity generated by solar energy systems installed at businesses, commercial enterprises, and private homes at nearly four times the rate of electricity generated by usual means.

IEC wants to bid on Negev solar plant

Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) is seeking to participate in the tender for the construction and operation of the solar power plant to be built at Ashalim in the Negev. IEC wants to be a sub-contractor, providing planning, management, and construction services for one of the consortia that will participate in the tender. IEC has begun negotiations to this end with Solel Solar Systems Ltd..

Renewable energy park to be built in Arava Valley

The Jerusalem Post reports that a renewable energy park is to be established in Kibbutz Ketura, located 50km north of Eilat in the Arava Valley. The park will be used for research, education and tourism. Believed to be the first of its kind, the park for renewable energy and energy saving is being established at the initiative of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies and the Arava Power Company.

The research center will be a joint project of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the Weizmann Institute of Science, and will be funded with donations from the Toronto community and the Jewish National Fund, among others.

According to its web site, the Arava Power Company (APC) will produce renewable energy and sell it to residents of the Arava and the Israel Electric Company. "The creation of Arava Power is part of a regional initiative to make the Arava the Silicon Valley of renewable energy." The company is negotiating for a regional exclusive on a new photovoltaic solar panel technology and is also setting up an independent affiliate across the border in Jordan.

Ed Hofland is Arava Power's Chairman, and Yossi Abramowitz is its President. Abramowitz blogs at Peoplehood.org, and, in September 2007, he gave a sermon on why developing solar power is part of the mission of the Jewish people. His words are inspiring, and I highly recommend reading the post.

For a sense of what Abramowitz has to say, and the goals that the Arava Power Company has set for itself, here is a passage from his sermon:

"The building of solar fields in the footsteps of Moses and the Israelites is certainly a worthwhile task (and may explain the glow on his face). Yet it can be much more. Can Israel become the first western economy to make the switch from carbon-based to solar based? Can the Jewish people become carbon neutral by 2020..."