Arava Power Company
{{Short description|Israeli solar energy company}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2012}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Arava Power Company
| logo = AravaPower.png
| logo_size = 200px
| location = Arava, Negev
| type =
| industry = Solar fields
| fate =
| predecessor =
| successor =
| founded = 2006
| founder = David Rosenblatt, Ketura through Ed Hofland, Yosef Abramowitz (active until 2010)
| defunct =
| hq_location_city = Ketura
| hq_location_country = Israel
| area_served =
| key_people =
| products =
| owner =
| num_employees =
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| website = {{URL|www.aravapower.com}}
}}
Arava Power Company (APC) Arava Power is a utility-scale renewables Developer-IPP that pioneered Israeli utility-scale PV market. The company founded in 2006 on Ketura in the Arava Valley. On June 5, 2011, APC inaugurated Israel's first medium-sized solar field, Ketura Sun. The field stretches over 80 dunams (8 hectares or 20 acres) of land and has an installed power of 4.95MW.{{cite web |url= http://www.aravapower.com/
|title= Arava Power Company|access-date=June 27, 2011| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110707154923/http://www.aravapower.com/| archive-date= July 7, 2011 | url-status= live}} As Arava Power installs solar fields only on land zoned solely for agricultural or industrial use.
In the Ketura Sun project, photovoltaic (PV) solar panel from Suntech company were used, in collaboration with Siemens Israel. Arava's mission is to supply Israel with 10% of its energy needs through clean, renewable solar energy.
History
Arava Power Company began as a partnership with Kibbutz Ketura.[https://www.jpost.com/jpost-tech/environment/arava-region-of-israel-about-to-be-100-percent-solar-powered-616630 Arava region of Israel about to be 100 percent solar-powered], Jerusalem Post Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion, was an inspiring figure for the vision of the company. In 1956, Ben Gurion said: "The largest and most impressive source of energy in our world and the source of life for every plant and animal, yet a source so little used by mankind today is the sun... Solar energy will continue to flow toward us almost indefinitely."
In August 2008, Siemens Project Ventures invested $15 Million in the Arava Power Company.{{Cite web|date=2009-08-28|title=Siemens to invest $15 million in Arava Power|url=https://oklahoman.com/article/feed/71123/siemens-to-invest-15-million-in-arava-power/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-03-23|website=Oklahoman.com|publisher=Associated Press|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331115503/https://www.oklahoman.com/article/feed/71123/siemens-to-invest-15-million-in-arava-power |archive-date=March 31, 2021 }}{{Cite press release | title = Siemens invests $ 15 million in Israeli solar company Arava Power | publisher = Siemens AG | date = August 28, 2009 | url = https://finance.siemens.com/financialservices/global/en/press/press_releases/Documents/Press_Release_Arava_Power_eng.pdf | access-date =June 27, 2011}}
In November 2010, the Minister of National Infrastructure, Uzi Landau, signed a landmark Power Purchase Agreement with Ketura Sun Company, a joint venture between Kibbutz Ketura and Arava worth an estimated 250 Million NIS. The agreement is valid for twenty years and guarantees that the energy produced at Ketura Sun will be transferred to the Israel Electric Corporation's power lines. It is the first PPA in Israel with a solar energy company.{{Cite web|last=Moskowitz|first=Ira|last2=Prophet|first2=The Green|title=Israel signs landmark solar energy agreement with Arava Power|url=http://jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com/israel-signs-landmark-solar-energy-agreement-with-arava-power/|access-date=2021-03-23|website=jewishchronicle.timesofisrael.com|language=en-US}}
In December 2010, Bank Hapoalim signed an agreement with Arava Power to extend a loan of 80 Million NIS to APC in order to fund the Ketura Sun project (valued at ~100 Million NIS).{{cite news |title= Construction To Begin On Israel's First Solar Field|first= Ehud Zion |last= Waldoks|url= http://www.jpost.com/Sci-Tech/Article.aspx?id=199316|newspaper= The Jerusalem Post|location= Israel |date= December 14, 2010|access-date=June 26, 2011}}
On June 5, 2011, APC inaugurated Israel's first solar field, Ketura Sun.{{Cite news|last=Levinson|first=Charles|date=2010-12-14|title=In Israel, Big Solar Field Begins to Rise|language=en-US|work=Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704681804576017623034544088|access-date=2021-03-23|issn=0099-9660}}
On May 22, 2012 Arava Power announced that it had reached financial close on an additional 58.5 MW for 8 projects to be built in the Arava and the Negev valued at 780 Million NIS or approximately $204 Million.{{Citation| last = Roca| first = Marc| title = Arava Closes Funding For $204 Million Israeli Solar Plants| newspaper = Bloomberg| date = May 22, 2012| url = https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-22/arava-closes-funding-for-204-million-israeli-solar-plants-1-.html| access-date = June 3, 2012}}
See also
References
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External links
- {{official website|http://www.aravapower.com/}}
- [https://www.youtube.com/aravapower/ Arava Power Company YouTube Channel]
{{Energy in Israel}}
Category:Solar energy companies of Israel