A group of Canadian investors plans to produce electricity for the Gaza Strip within three to six months, the Israel Electric Corp. has announced.
The new plans call for a ship to be anchored off the coast of Gaza. Gas turbines aboard the ship will produce 120 megawatts of electricity.
Current electricity usage in Gaza, at peak periods, is close to 70 megawatts.
Before finalizing their plans, the Canadian investors met with the general manager of the Israel Electric Corp., Moshe Katz, and with the director of the electric authority in the Energy Ministry, Shlomo Brovender.
Katz and Brovender called upon the Canadians to provide collateral to secure investments already made by the Israel Electric Corp. in Gaza that have an estimated value of over $5 million.
Palestinian representatives have asked the Israel Electric Corp. to continue supplying Gaza with electricity until the Canadian operation is in place. Israel Electric will continue to provide power to Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Power supplies to the autonomous Jericho district in the West Bank will be provided by the East Jerusalem Electric Corp.
In a related development, Bezek, the Israeli government’s telecommunications corporation, has announced that it has signed an agreement with International Technologies that grants the U.S.-based firm an exclusive franchise for providing telecommunications services to Gaza and Jericho.
As part of the agreement, Bezek will work jointly with International Technologies to insure the continuity of telecommunications services between the Palestinian autonomous areas and Israel.
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