"Israel must diversify its energy sources in both normal and emergency situations"

The State of Israel needs energy diversification and decentralization, according to Einat Rom, CEO of Amisragas. She was speaking in a panel moderated by Calcalist reporter Amir Kurtz, at Calcalist's Israel Resilience Conference held in partnership with Phoenix. Yoni Hantis, Deputy CEO of Doral Energy, also participated in the panel.

There are blackout scenarios currently being talked about. How does this scenario effect Amisragas?

Einat Rom: "The blackout scenario that has recently made headlines is indeed alarming and we have received many inquiries from the public, wanting to purchase gas and gas heating. In such an event it is significant to understand that the State of Israel must diversify energy. The state is in a relatively isolated place, look at Ukraine for example where it was possible to bring electricity from Germany. Energy diversity is critical here. It must be taken care of not only during war, when there is a power outage, but also during regular times.

"It seems that the state has put all its eggs in one basket. Amisragas has been selling LPG (Liquefied petroleum gas) for 75 years, but we have entered new areas. We sell electricity, we have a solar company. And we have a serious problem with transmission, we want to install thousands of solar units and we are waiting for the transmission from the electricity company from January. We must talk about energy diversification, LPG, electricity, and natural gas."

What barriers do you encounter?

Yoni Hantis: “We are in a situation where a power plant may be hit by missiles and the main solution is energy decentralization, solar energy that can be deployed anywhere. The ability to disable a solar project is low, it is difficult to disable such a thing. Until today, renewable energy was an environmental matter, but today it is an economic matter, it is the cheapest alternative for generating electricity and it is an existential need. Doral Energy connects storage facilities of over 60 megawatts and this allows barriers to be overcome to a certain extent.

"In addition, instead of taking a land project and covering the land with panels - cover a roof with panels. It is possible to produce agro-voltaic projects, meaning two floors where there is electricity and agriculture. This creates energy and nutritional security. The farmer benefits from this. Speaking of the kibbutzim, the revival of Gaza border settlements and the northern towns will come from renewable energy. We have thousands of systems throughout the country, some in the Gaza border towns, but only one percent of them have been damaged thanks to decentralization. The area has a tremendous potential to create such electricity. This will provide income to the kibbutzim and that is important."

What advice do you have for the public?

Einat Rom: "First, equip yourself. Gas stoves, gas heating, all kinds of solutions such as gas water heaters. This will provide an excellent answer to the problem. Now during the war, IDF soldiers serving in the south enjoy showers on gas water heaters. We did this voluntarily, of course. Soldiers can shower with hot water on gas. We must diversify. We must decentralize. When we look at energy decentralization, this is true for renewable energies and also for LPG, because it can be stored in all kinds of places. Here, too, the state must do much more. We only have one import port for LPG. This whole issue of energy diversification and storage places is critical."

Yoni Hantis: "The state must plan a real strategic plan going forward, let entrepreneurs work. We think ahead and we want the state to remove barriers and plan ahead. Without planning and decentralization we will be in a bad situation. There is indeed a spirit of change, but we need more."