Renewables developer Teralight has announced the launch of a 250MW solar plant, said to be Israel’s largest, in the Ta’anakh region in the southern Jezreel Valley.

The project, valued at NIS 900 million ($245 million), was initiated by Teralight company and developed with support from the Moshavim Movement cooperative, an initiative aimed at creating green and cultivated rural space in Israel.

A quarter million Israelis in approximately 63 thousand households will benefit from the clean energy produced. This represents 5.2% of the country’s green energy capacity and 1.2% of its overall electricity capacity.

Rani Lifshitz, CEO of Teralight, said: “The Ta’anakh project advances Israel a significant step towards increasing the use of electricity produced from clean solar energy, produced by Blue and White. The practical meaning of 250 megawatts in the Ta’anakh project, on its two parts, is the supply of electricity to about 60 thousand homes in Israel, during the first half of 2024.”

Israel – a small country with big ambitions

According to Israel’s latest energy roadmap, the country’s energy mix must include 30% renewables by 2030.

The roadmap predicts that solar will account for approximately 90% of the electricity, and wind, water and biomass making up the remaining 10%.

In order to reach these goals however Israel needs to tackle a lack of land resources and is therefore embracing dual-use solar projects including rooftops, water reservoirs and agrovoltaics.

The country is also capitalising on local energy tech startups or innovation to drive the energy transition forward. According to the World Economic Forum, Israel’s climate tech sector grew by 60% between 2016 and 2022, reaching more than 850 companies at the last count.

One example is the recent breakthrough at Technion in Israel. Researchers have found a way to harvest electrons from plants and extract the current. According to the scientific organisation, ACS, by collecting electrons naturally transported within plant cells, the researchers can generate electricity as part of a ‘green,’ biological solar cell. Now the research team has used a succulent plant to create a living ‘bio-solar cell’ that runs on the solar powered photosynthesis.