Haaretz: A gas monopoly is a threat to Israeli democracy

The issue of the cost of living in Israel, the future of certain industries and even elements of the government’s ability to govern – the main socioeconomic issues on the public agenda – are all liable to be decided in the coming days in the office of the antitrust commissioner, Prof. David Gilo.

Gilo will decide whether all the natural gas reserves discovered off Israel’s coast will be deposited in the hands of a private monopoly, the Delek-Noble Energy group, or whether the state will embark on a legal battle to divvy up ownership of this strategic resource among competing suppliers.

To get an idea of the enormous importance of this issue, it’s necessary to know the facts: In the coming years, natural gas will account for 80 percent of Israel’s electricity production. It will have a greater impact on the price of water than any other input, will be used in 90 percent of industrial production and is even likely to fuel 40 percent of the vehicles on Israel’s roads. Therefore, a monopoly that controls these gas reserves will determine not only the price of electricity, water and gasoline, but also the unemployment rate and the very existence of an independent economy.
MORE