27 JANUARY 2017 06:30Sharon Udasin
Under the new administration the US stands to become a global leader in the natural gas sector, particularly in liquefied natural gas.
If former Texas governor Rick Perry becomes energy secretary, American-Israeli relations in the sector stand the chance to become stronger than ever, industry stakeholders told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.
“Rick Perry is a friend of Israel and has visited Israel,” said Zvi Rome, chairman of the Israel-America Chamber of Commerce’s energy committee.
“What we have learned – we the energy committee here in Israel – is that this administration will take a fresh look at all energy issues in the US, where the lead concern is to allow energy companies to take their natural leadership position in the world.”
May 30th, 2016
Israel Electric Corp. (IEC) has initiated a move to simplify LNG import procedures and lower the price, The Marker, a business daily reported. IEC is the only entity importing LNG, most of which it uses in its power plants, the remainder being sold on the market.
Israel has no onshore regasification facility. In 2011 Israel invested $150mn in an offshore buoy that can be connected to a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU). However, each time the FSRU is emptied it has to leave Israeli waters and sail to Cyprus in order to be resupplied with LNG from an awaiting LNG cargo ship. That takes at least three days, during which period any major mishap in the natural gas systems has the potential to cause lengthy power outages.
