SUNDAY ENERGY, ORMAY DO NEW ISRAEL SUN

Sunday Energy forges new ground in Israel with Ormat
Emma Ritch, June 3, 2009 (Cleantech Group)

"Isrsael- based Sunday Energy…inked a deal to build the largest rooftop solar installation in the Middle East…At just 1 megawatt, the installation isn’t huge by global standards. But in Israel, where total installed capacity at the end of 2008 was 1 MW, it’s the beginning of a new solar market…

"Sunday is installing the solar system on about 15,000 square meters on top of a factory owned by Reno, Nev.-based geothermal developer Ormat Technologies in Yavneh, Israel. The project is expected to be completed in the first half of 2010, generating energy worth NIS 60 million ($15.15 million) during the next 20 years through a power-purchase agreement with Israel Electric Cooperative, the state-owned utility that is the sole supplier of electricity in the country."

The next energy power in the Middle East? (click to enlarge)

"Israel Electric will pay NIS 1.98 (50 cents) per kiloWatt-hour for solar installations up to 50 kW—four times the going price of electricity for consumers. The tariff for installations larger than 50 kW but smaller than 5 MW is still being decided…[O]pportunities in solar market in Israel aren’t widely known, so players are trying to educate pension funds and hedge funds in order to drum up project financing…

"The Israeli tariffs guarantee a return of about 12 percent to 15 percent for 20 to 25 years…The National Infrastructures Ministry said the tariffs are designed to help Israel reach 20 percent of energy supplied by renewable sources by 2020."

Solar producers are gearing up all over the Middle East. This sun is the prize.(click to enlarge)

"In March, Israel's National Infrastructures Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer gave the approval to issue a license for the country's first solar thermal plant…[a 100-kilowatt facility] using heliostats and a solar receiver…The country's largest solar installation—just 50-kilowatts—was connected to the grid in December…

"Sunday has installed less than 1 MW to-date, but has 55 MW of signed deals in the pipeline. Sunday expects to install between 4 MW and 6 MW before the end of 2009, and 15 MW next year…The self-funded company [founded in 2007] is seeking...Series A financing and project financing...[Sunday Energy plans to] invest NIS 500 million ($133 million) in the next two years for photovoltaic solar arrays…[T]he company is also looking outside of Israel for underserved markets…The Middle East is considered one of the biggest future markets for renewable energy, but few installations are in place today…"