Israeli and Emirati companies have signed a first renewable energy cooperation agreement aimed at making the Jewish state a world leader in solar energy , officials said on Wednesday
The United Arab Emirates and Israel signed in September in Washington an agreement to normalize their ties sponsored by the United States, opening the door to bilateral agreements in various fields, in particular health, tourism, technology or even Sport.
“These are the first fruits of Abraham’s agreements (name of the standardization agreement, note) in the field of energy”, wrote on Twitter the Israeli Minister of Energy, Yuval Steinitz, welcoming a collaboration which will enable Israel to become “the world leader in solar energy within six to seven years”.
This “new era of cooperation in the field of renewable energy and advanced technologies will benefit both countries” in “clean energy”, said in a joint statement Mohamed Jamil al-Ramahi, head of the Masdar group.
The agreement more specifically commits this Abu Dhabi-based company and EDF Renewables Israel, a subsidiary of the French giant EDF, based in Herzliya near Tel Aviv.
“It is a strategic partnership agreement to advance existing projects in Israel,” including financial investments , Ayalon Vaniche, CEO of EDF Renewables Israel, told AFP.
According to him, the know-how of Masdar which “is a very big player” in the renewable energy sector is “particularly relevant in Israel, because they are building the same type of projects as us”.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the agreement was signed by videoconference between the managers of Masdar, EDF Renouvelables in France and its subsidiary in Israel.
In addition to the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Bahrain and Morocco have announced the normalization of their relations with the Hebrew state, castigated by the Palestinians who see it as a “betrayal” of Arab countries.
Source: https://www.lemondedelenergie.com/israel-emirats-energie-solaire/2021/01/21/