Israel’s plan to build up to 13 new gas-fired power plants by 2040 routes private developers straight to rural kibbutzim, asking those collective communities to negotiate the sale of farmland for grid-scale infrastructure. The deals have divided neighbours, families, and the two halves of a kibbutz that split in 1952 over a political rift. At Kibbutz Givat Haim Meuhad, the chairman’s 10-year-old son was ostracised at a regional school because his father backed a proposed plant.
Talks are underway for four power plants within or along the borders of the Hefer Valley Regional Council, a narrow tract running from the Mediterranean coast eastward toward the West Bank, near the Palestinian city of Tulkarem. The state leaves the final say to Vatal, the fast-track planning committee for national infrastructure, which picks the winners from the plans entrepreneurs submit. Ron Eifer, the ministry’s head of sustainable energy, told The Times of Israel the country cannot “bet on” needing fewer than 13 new gas plants. Local officials have told communities approached by entrepreneurs to vote the proposals down.
The Decision That Handed Land to Developers
The push traces back to Government Decision 2282, approved in October 2024 to keep Israel’s electricity supply stable through 2040. The decision orders new renewable infrastructure mostly in the country’s periphery and new gas-fired capacity mostly in the centre, where most of the population lives. It sets a ceiling of 13 gas-fired plants but tells private entrepreneurs to scout the sites themselves.
An interministerial team led by the Energy Ministry produced an unpublished report that informed the policy. Based on that report, the state concluded up to 13 plants would be needed across six new districts carved out for the project. Officials asked for plans covering 19 potential plants to keep developers competing. The decision did not specify any locations, leaving land acquisition to deals between developers and landowners.
Those deals then go to Vatal, the planning committee for national infrastructure, which picks the winners. A Vatal spokesman told The Times of Israel the committee weighs each project against the surrounding approved plans, environmental impact assessments, and a broader set of parameters so that “the outlook is broad.” Israel’s energy mix and 2040 demand outlook are tracked by the country’s Electricity Authority, which forecasts installed capacity will reach 39.6 GW by 2030.
Four Plants, 13 Square Kilometres
The narrow geography concentrates the conflict. Within the Hefer Valley area alone, three separate efforts to build power stations are already in motion, and a fourth in the neighbouring Menashe Regional Council has been finalised. The state has grouped the Hefer Valley inside “District 2,” a planning zone that stretches from Hadera in the north to Rosh HaAyin in central Israel. The cluster of proposals would place four stations within a radius of 13 square kilometres (five square miles) near the seam line.
Galit Shaul, who heads the Hefer Valley Regional Council, called the situation “inconceivable and dangerous” in a statement to The Times of Israel. She blamed the absence of a national siting policy and what she described as the “unbridled privatisation” of power-station construction. Shaul warned that concentrating gas-fired plants there would create what she called an “unprecedented environmental and health disaster.” She also flagged a security risk, noting the stations could become targets for missiles, drones, or anti-tank fire from Iran, Lebanon, or terror groups in the West Bank.
The four projects would touch different communities and are moving on different timelines. The table below sets out where each one stands today. Two have already been forwarded to Vatal, the planning committee for national infrastructure. A third is awaiting Vatal’s review. The fourth, championed by Idan Ofer, has been voted down twice by the kibbutzim whose land it would have used.
| Project | Location | Developer | Outcome so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moshav Beit Yanai | Hefer Valley | Shamir Energy | Approved by cooperative society; sent to Vatal |
| Emek Hefer industrial zone | Hefer Valley | Mekorot water company | Plan submitted for a small plant tied to a desalination expansion |
| Menashe Regional Council | Neighbouring district | Two real estate tycoons | 700-megawatt plan finalised; sent to Vatal |
| Kibbutz Givat Haim Meuhad and Ihud | Hefer Valley | Idan Ofer (London-based billionaire) | Rejected by both kibbutzim |
The Hefer Valley Regional Council oversees a narrow tract of land stretching from the Mediterranean Sea east toward the West Bank, near the Palestinian city of Tulkarem. The state has placed the area inside “District 2,” a planning zone stretching from Hadera in the north to Rosh HaAyin in central Israel.
A Kibbutz Chairman’s Son and a Billionaire
The personal cost of the dispute surfaced inside Kibbutz Givat Haim Meuhad, near the city of Hadera. The kibbutz chairman, Erez Magal, voted in favour of a gas-fired power plant on kibbutz land, framing it as an economic opportunity. His position drew a backlash from the regional council’s campaign against any new gas plant in the area. The dispute spread to the regional school, where Magal said his 10-year-old son was ostracised and harassed by children from other communities.
“There’s huge anger about the rhetoric from the council and the protest HQ, mainly organized by people outside of the kibbutz,” Magal said. He said the debate inside his own kibbutz stayed civil, while the wider campaign became personal. Kibbutz Givat Haim Meuhad ultimately voted against the proposal by a slight majority.
The neighbouring Kibbutz Givat Haim Ihud rejected the same proposal by a margin of nearly two to one. Givat Haim Ihud formed in 1952, when a political rift split the original Kibbutz Givat Haim into two separate communities. The deal proposed for both kibbutzim came from Idan Ofer, a London-based Israeli billionaire. The two rejections leave Ofer’s project for this site without a local sign-off. Both votes came against the backdrop of a national slowdown on the renewable energy targets Israel has set for itself, particularly solar power.
The Council’s Alarm
Shaul, the council head, framed the cluster as a failure of national planning rather than a local dispute. She argued the state handed the siting decisions to private entrepreneurs without first mapping where the plants could safely and sensibly be sited. In her view, the result is a haphazard pile-up of competing projects in one narrow valley.
As a direct result of the lack of a national planning policy and the unbridled privatization of power station construction, an inconceivable and dangerous situation has been created in Emek Hefer: plans for the construction of four power stations, some of which are being promoted by private developers, within a radius of only 13 square kilometers (five square miles) near the seam line.
Galit Shaul, head of the Hefer Valley Regional Council, made the comments in a statement to The Times of Israel. Shaul also warned that concentrating several gas-fired power plants in the Hefer Valley would create what she called an “unprecedented environmental and health disaster.” She raised a separate security concern, noting the stations could become targets for missiles, drones, or anti-tank fire from Iran, Lebanon, or terror groups in the West Bank. The council’s campaign against any gas-fired plants has angered many residents of the kibbutzim approached by developers, including Erez Magal.
How the Energy Ministry Justifies It
The Energy Ministry sees the same picture very differently. Ron Eifer, the ministry’s head of sustainable energy who also manages the electricity sector and represents the ministry at the Electricity Authority, said 10 gas-fired power plants currently supply around 70% of the country’s electricity needs. He noted that at least two more will be chosen by 2030 from four already approved in an earlier planning round. Eifer framed the new round of plants as more efficient replacements for older, dirtier ones. He pointed to population growth, rising living standards, the electrification of transport, and the construction of data centres as drivers of new demand.
On the renewable gap that critics point to, Eifer struck a hedged note. He said the ministry is pushing to advance renewable energy and storage as fast as it can. He was blunt about the limits of that bet.
The Energy Ministry is doing everything it can to advance renewable energy. We hope we’ll need fewer than 13 new gas plants by moving ahead faster with renewables and storage, but we can’t bet on it.
Ron Eifer, head of sustainable energy at Israel’s Energy Ministry, made the comments to The Times of Israel. He explained that at least half of the 13 more efficient plants in the current planning round would replace older, more polluting ones. Eifer’s framing leaves the final number of new plants contingent on how quickly renewables and storage can scale in Israel.
What Stands Before the Planning Committee
Vatal, the planning committee for national infrastructure, will pick the final winners from the deals developers and landowners submit. Three of the four proposals in the Hefer Valley cluster have already moved into the planning pipeline, and the fourth was rejected at the kibbutz ballot. Other plots in District 2 remain open, since the government’s 13-plant ceiling was set without fixed locations. The privatisation of siting is producing a queue of overlapping proposals in one narrow stretch of central Israel.
The list below tracks how the planning process works in practice for any given bid. The shift from a state-led siting policy to an entrepreneur-led one is what has put the regional council on a war footing. The change is also what has produced the four overlapping proposals in Hefer Valley and Menashe.
Israel is already behind its own targets for renewable energy, particularly solar power. The Energy Ministry’s planning round also leaves room for additional sites in District 2, since the 13-plant target was set without fixed locations.
- Private developers approach kibbutzim and moshavim directly to negotiate land deals.
- The affected community holds an internal vote on whether to host the plant.
- Approved proposals are forwarded to Vatal, the planning committee for national infrastructure.
- Vatal weighs each proposal against the surrounding approved plans, environmental assessments, and other parameters.
Vatal said it weighs each infrastructure plan against the surrounding approved and promoted plans, the environmental impact assessment, and other parameters so that “the outlook is broad.” The committee has not yet published a timetable for final approvals on any of the four projects. Israel’s renewable energy programme and targets sit behind the renewable progress that critics say has lagged the country’s stated goals. The Hefer Valley Regional Council has advised every kibbutz and moshav approached by a developer to vote the proposal down.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Vatal?
Vatal is the Hebrew acronym for the fast-track planning committee for national infrastructure. Under Government Decision 2282, developers submit land deals to Vatal, which then picks the final candidates from the proposals.
What is Government Decision 2282?
Government Decision 2282 was approved in October 2024 and sets out Israel’s plan to keep electricity supply stable through 2040. It orders new renewable infrastructure mostly in the country’s periphery and new gas-fired capacity mostly in the centre, where most of the population lives.
Why is Israel building gas-fired plants if it has renewable targets?
The Energy Ministry says the country needs gas-fired generation to keep electricity supply in step with population growth, electrification of transport, and new data centres. Ron Eifer, the ministry’s head of sustainable energy, said the ministry is pushing renewables and storage as fast as possible, but cannot “bet on” the build-out shrinking below 13 plants. Israel’s 30% renewable power target by 2030 sits far above the 12.5% of electricity renewables produced in 2023, per U.S. trade data.
Who is Idan Ofer?
Idan Ofer is a London-based Israeli billionaire. He was behind the proposal to build a gas-fired plant on land owned by the two Givat Haim kibbutzim in the Hefer Valley, which both kibbutzim rejected.
