Israel will purchase three 250,000-deadweight-ton supertankers to transport oil to Eilat, on the Gulf of Aqaba, where a 42-inch pipeline is being laid to the Mediterranean port of Ashkelon, Minister of Transport Moshe Carmel told the Knesset (Parliament) yesterday. He said that these vessels, which will be among the largest afloat, will make Israel independent of foreign shipping in hauling the oil, a vital resource. He said that a fourth supertanker has been taken by Israel on a 15-year charter.
Mr. Carmel also disclosed that a survey is being made of the feasibility of transporting goods other than oil over the “land bridge” from Eilat to the Mediterranean. In that connection, an American company has reportedly asked for a concession to produce, maintain and repair 20-ton containers for use on an Eilat-Mediterranean transportation link.
Israel already owns tankers in the 60,000-ton class, a size that was considered “super” up until a few years ago. Several of these vessels however are registered abroad and fly foreign flags.
The Israeli Government will buy Israel’s “little pipeline”-a 16-inch one-from Eilat to Haifa from the original investment corporation, headed by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, for $22,000,000.
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