Hand hält Glühbirne mit Weltkugel darin in den Himmel, steht für internationale Energiepolitik; Quelle: istockphoto.com/Claudiad

© istockphoto.com/Claudiad

Yesterday evening, Israel’s Energy Minister Karine Elharrar and Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy Oliver Krischer signed a joint declaration of intent on energy cooperation on the margins of this year’s Ministerial Meeting of the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris. The energy partnership serves as a forum to discuss the strategic collaboration between the two countries in the energy sector.

The aim of the German-Israeli energy partnership is to find solutions in order to master climate change and to press ahead with the development of technologies for reliable, sustainable and affordable energy. The focus is on the expansion of renewable energy and the application of new energy technologies.

Ms Elharrar said: "These turbulent times show us once again how important it is to promote understanding between nations and cooperation between countries. This is an important step in the context of the relations between Israel and Germany. Our governments will work even more closely together in order to promote bilateral and international interests in fields such as renewable energy, natural gas, research and development. I believe that Israeli businesses and research institutions in the energy sector will greatly benefit from this collaboration. They will be able to make use of the close relations between Israel and Germany – one of the leading nations in the EU – also to the benefit of their German partners."

Mr Krischer said: "The joint declaration on energy cooperation signed with Israel today aims to bundle efforts in order to master the global challenges in the fields of climate change and energy. Israel is a strong technology partner for Germany, and Germany contributes its expertise on the energy transition to the partnership, especially in the fields of energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. We now need to implement this joint declaration and breathe life into it."

The declaration of intent identifies important areas of future cooperation, including renewable energy, cyber security for energy infrastructures, technological innovation, and collaboration in the fields of natural gas and the use of hydrogen.

Both sides aim to intensify joint research projects.

Every year, a German-Israeli high-level intergovernmental steering group will convene and a regular dialogue involving the private sector in the context of joint working groups will take place.