This project began as part of a joint venture with the Newtech unit at the Ministry of Economics, and since 2015 it has continued with the funding of the Samuel Neaman Institute, as part of the Industrial Excellence Center. The goal of the project is to leverage Israel's position as a leader in the field of renewable energy, including energy production and its integration into the energy system, efficiency improvements, and the development of fuel substitutes.
Work began in 2014 with a survey and mapping of global trends and the Israeli industry and its relative advantages vis-à-vis the global trends. Work proceeded on identifying current barriers and deriving policy recommendations that would allow the establishment of a thriving Israeli industry in this area.
During that year, a report was published, detailing the global trends in this sector today, showing an update of the current situation in Israel and the comparative advantage of the renewable energy industry in Israel. The report presented the tools available to the manufacturers, identified barriers to realizing technological and business opportunities for the Israeli industry, and suggested recommendations for a supporting policy. In addition, a database was built, containing all the Israeli companies operating in the field of renewable energy in various categories.
In 2015, the database of the report was expanded to include operative recommendations for removing barriers and updating policies. A Final Report detailing this work was distributed. In addition, the work was presented at the initiative of the Ministry of Economy to a broad inter-ministerial forum.
In 2016, the research findings were presented by the SNI staff to the Science and Technology Committee of the Knesset, with the participation and support of industry representatives and the Ministry of the Economy. The main recommendation is to establish a fund in cooperation with the government and including private capital to promote the commercialization of innovative technologies for renewable energy and increased energy efficiency.
During 2016, the Ministry of the Economy adopted the recommendations of the Neaman Institute team to support and encourage the commercialization of innovative solutions in the field of renewable energy. Since mid-2016, the Ministry of the Economy, led by the Newtech Unit, has promoted the program toward making a government decision. As part of this activity, the study findings were presented again to the Science and Technology Committee of the Knesset by Newtech and then submitted for review and promotion by the Ministry of Finance. Hopefully, the establishment of the fund will be realized in the coming year, and the research team will accompany the process in order to help with the successful implementation during 2017.
