In an in depth vote, the Committee for the Preservation of Agricultural Land and Open Areas has dominated out plans for developing photo voltaic fields at an funding of over NIS 100 million in 4 kibbutzim within the Gaza Strip border space. The rejection of the plans is opposite to choices by the Israel Land Authority in November 2023, and can impede the decreasing of electrical energy costs that initiatives of this type might result in.
The committee, which is a part of the Planning Administration, justified its determination on the grounds that the Tekuma area “is the granary of Israel”, and the Ministry of Agriculture additionally insists that building of photo voltaic fields harms the way forward for native agriculture. For his or her half, the Ministry of Finance and the Israel Land Authority are pushing for the usage of photo voltaic fields with a purpose to meet Israel’s targets for energy manufacturing from renewable sources.
Within the background is a dispute in precept on the land utilization combine: whether or not it’s proper to assemble outright photo voltaic fields, or whether or not to choose dual-use fashions (agri-voltaic) for rising agricultural produce underneath photo voltaic panels which are costlier to assemble and preserve.
“After October 7, as a part of the state’s want to profit the Gaza border settlements, the Israel Land Authority determined to permit them to assemble extra photo voltaic fields. The quota rose from 250 dunams to 400 dunams,” says Assaf Bavli, financial coordinator of Kibbutz Magen.
“We put ahead a photo voltaic plan, and got here to the District Planning and Constructing Committee. It authorized the plan, however stated {that a} determination was required from the Committee for the Preservation of Agricultural Land and Open Areas,” says Bavli. As talked about, that committee rejected the plan. It authorized the 250 dunam allocation from earlier than the warfare, however insisted that the remainder needed to come along with agriculture (dual-use) and never at its expense. That call additionally put an finish to related plans by Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha, Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak, and Kibbutz Erez, which is near the northern Gaza Strip. In response to market estimates, enlargement of the photo voltaic area allocation would have meant NIS 1-2 million income yearly to every of the settlements, from renting out the land.
On paper, the dual-use methods are a super answer, combining vitality manufacturing and agriculture, however Bavli says that “it’s not good to combine them.” On this context, the Nationwide Financial Council within the Prime Minister’s Workplace revealed a report in September 2024 that discovered that, with a purpose to make important progress in implementing energy manufacturing from renewable sources, giant photo voltaic fields must be constructed within the Negev alongside dual-use areas. In response to the report, the price per kilowatt of developing a traditional photo voltaic area is NIS 2,000, versus NIS 4,500 in dual-use, agri-voltaic initiatives.
Finance Ministry takes sides
The federal government determination in December additionally said that in settlements within the “Tekuma” space by which settlements are being rehabilitated after the October 7 assault, “superior vitality options” must be constructed. Vital initiatives have been authorized for a number of kibbutzim, together with Kfar Aza, Kissufim, and Nir Oz, however when the Tekuma administration examined the matter in April 2024, it selected to be evasive: “The vary of related concerns… and the required stability for preserving open areas and the agricultural character of the realm must be taken under consideration.”
In the meantime, the Ministry of Finance has taken sides. In December, the ministry demanded that the Planning Administration ought to advance photo voltaic installations “that facilitate electrical energy manufacturing in excessive volumes and at low value.” In response to the Ministry of Finance, 65% of Israel solar energy output is already produced from dual-use methods, and there’s no justification for ruling out a budget standard various. This stance received official backing in session of the Planning Administration the place it was determined that “plans for land-based installations won’t be dismissed out of hand.”
In opposition to them, the Ministry of Agriculture has taken the other stance. In an official assertion in July, it stated, “To the extent that the land within the plan is appropriate and may be farmed, it must be preserved, and solely dual-use installations must be allowed.”
Raanan Amoyal, head of the Ministry of Agriculture Planning Division, says, “The idea of agricultural manufacturing, which is the land, is being harmed on an enormous scale.” Amoyal fears an actual meals scarcity sooner or later. “It’s troublesome, however the nation has to look to its land assets. You’ll be able to’t ignore agriculture and look solely at vitality,” he says.
The Committee for the Preservation of Agricultural Land and Open Areas said in response to the report: “The committee has regard for the preservation of the Tekuma area because the granary and produce useful resource of the State of Israel. For that motive, and in accordance with nationwide planning coverage, the committee offers precedence to agri-voltaic installations that let twin use of the land for agricultural crops and vitality manufacturing, as opposed to photo-voltaic installations that forestall any agricultural use of the land and thus hurt open areas, agricultural land, and meals safety. Accordingly, and with a purpose to discover a stability between all the wants, the committee allotted 250 dunams to every settlement for building of photo-voltaic installations, whereas the remainder of the land will probably be zoned for agri-voltaic installations that may facilitate rising agricultural crops alongside vitality manufacturing.”
Printed by Globes, Israel enterprise information – en.globes.co.il – on July 16, 2025.
© Copyright of Globes Writer Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2025.
