Gov't decides not to decide on Reindeer power plant

• Published date: 21 April 2024
• Author: Dean Shmuel Elmas
• Publication title: Globes (Rishon LeZion, Israel)

This is a further stage in the unending story of the two power plants. In May last year, the government decided not to approve them. It waited for the decision of the National Infrastructures Committee, which approved the plans on March 18 this year, despite heavy political pressure. Since then, Minister of Transport Miri Regev has continued to fight the plans, contrary to the stance of the professional staff in her own ministry, and she demanded that the matter should be discussed by the government again

By law, if the National Infrastructures Committee approves a plan, ministers have 21 days in which to require a discussion on the matter in the government, otherwise the committee's decision becomes final. If the government decides against the plan, that decision becomes final. In this case, the government has apparently decided to return the Reindeer plan to the National Infrastructures Committee for amendments.

This decision comes on top of the unexplained foot-dragging by Israel Electric Corporation (IEC), which for over a year has failed to publish regulations for three power plants that have been approved for construction. One of them is the Dalia 2 plant, which was approved in May 2019. In its case, IEC sought to wait until other power plants were approved. The other two are the expansion of the Dorad plant and the...