Ongoing war proves Israel must establish energy independence - opinion

The Swords of Iron War does not take place only in the security arena; its effects go far beyond the political and diplomatic arenas.

While we continue to fight for the return of the abductees and the restoration of stability in the region, we must also deal with the economic challenges that the war created and formulate solutions with an emphasis on energy and economic independence for the country the day after.

The economic price tag of the war is expected to amount to approximately NIS 150-200 billion, which reflects a decrease of approximately 10% of Israel’s GNP and resets the annual growth targets, according to the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS).

Beyond the direct economics of the war itself, including manpower and armaments, Israel is investing and will continue to invest huge sums in aid to the evacuated residents, in support of business and industry and during the overall reconstruction of the conflict areas, which will require a high financial commitment which is expected to last for many years. Already now, the country is forced to deal with increasing economic pressures on the geopolitical level, which are manifesting as of now on two main fronts: Turkey and Yemen.

As soon as the war broke out, Turkey began to act against Israel in the political arena, but recently it also began to take economic measures. A few weeks ago, Turkey removed Israel from its list of export destination countries, meaning it will stop subsidizing and supporting businesses operating with the State of Israel.

Along with many Israeli industries dependent on imports from Turkey, including the construction industry which depends on the import of aggregates and raw materials, the energy industry may also be adversely affected by the decision.

Recently, Turkey decided to freeze a plan to search for energy in the Mediterranean Sea and export gas to Europe, which was supposed to be carried out in cooperation with Israel. Moreover, Israel has a certain dependence on Turkey in the field of oil: most of the oil imported to Israel comes from Asian countries and the Caucasus through the BTC oil pipeline, which flows through a terminal in southeastern Turkey.

In addition, the activity of the Houthis in Yemen creates another development front in creating economic pressure on Israel and the countries that support it. Since the start of the campaign, Houthi forces have been imposing a de facto naval blockade, preventing the passage of ships through the Red Sea.

Attacks that break out on cargo ships in the area are ongoing, forcing them to take much longer routes than planned, so there are many economic consequences. For example, re-routing an oil tanker coming from Asia to the Northwest African region via the Cape of Good Hope doubles its journey time from 16 to 32 days, incurring increases estimated at hundreds of thousands of dollars.

IN VIEW of the reality in the geopolitical arena, Israel must reduce its dependence on external energy sources, and establish energy security and resilience that relies on more independent production.

Israel has multiple avenues to establish energy independence 

There are extensive efforts to diversify sources of available energy, including adopting innovative technologies and deploy production and storage facilities for renewable energy, while complying with its international commitments on climate and environmental issues.

The State of Israel has indeed been blessed with significant natural gas discoveries, but this is not the case when it comes to oil reserves where the state is completely dependent on imports. Israel will continue to require oil in the near future.

Energy security, and the ability to supply fuels and resources, will ensure IDF operational and routine activities. Other essential industries such as shipping, aviation and the petrochemical industry also rely mainly on oil, and it must be ensured that the state is able to provide continued activity even in times of emergency.

The solution may lie in advanced technologies, which make use of available natural and environmental resources that exist in Israel for the benefit of energy production. Thus, in waste-to-energy conversion (WtE) processes, various types of waste will go through a conversion process that produces fuels and other essential energy products, which are used in productive industries.

These solutions are based on end-of-line facilities with pyrolysis or direct burning technologies, which offer an environmental solution to waste such as plastic that is mostly untreated and landfilled today.

The profit is two-fold: producing energy from an existing source alongside an ecological solution and reducing landfilling. Widespread adoption of these technologies will help Israel meet its obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the waste volumes. At the same time, construction of endpoint facilities for waste management and their operation will form a new employment anchor that will open up possibilities for many workers.

In the bottom line, WtE technologies may play a significant role in building Israel’s future energy resilience, increasing independent energy production capacity and reducing dependence on importing expensive fuels and resources from foreign countries.

The writer is an environmental engineer at the REM Partnership, which promotes the establishment of a facility for recycling and recovering energy from plastic waste in the industrial area of the Rotem Plain in the Negev.