Gem worker sued for a million shekels after diamond falls apart
Intro
This "sometimes occurs during the processing and polishing process, and usually the insurance covers the damage," said the defendant's attorney.
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An employee of an Israeli diamond and jewelry company was processing a diamond worth 1 million shekels (about $270,000) when it exploded, rendering it worthless. He is now being sued for the cost of the diamond.
The worker is the brother of the owner of the company.
The two companies that supplied the diamond decided to sue the worker personally at the Israeli Diamond Exchange Arbitration Tribunal, Israeli news site N12 reported.
The lawsuit is ongoing.
Attorney Avichai Yosef, who represents the defendant, said diamonds do sometimes explode while being developed.
"This is an event that sometimes occurs during the processing and polishing process, and usually the insurance covers the damage," he said.
"In this case, there was no insurance coverage for the diamond, which is estimated to be worth about NIS 1 million," he added.
The fact that there was a failure to buy insurance is at the heart of the suit, N12 reported.
"According to TASE [Tel Aviv Stock Exchange] regulations, all parties— the polisher, the buyer and others—are supposed to purchase insurance for the risks. It is clear that the lack of insurance is what caused the outbreak of the dispute that reached the door of the Diamond Exchange Arbitration Institute," Yosef said.
He argued that the defendant was only an employee and not making independent decisions and therefore should not be held accountable.
The attorney asked the Tel Aviv District Court for a declaratory judgment, according to which the Diamond Exchange Arbitration Tribunal has no jurisdiction to hear the dispute.
Yosef also submitted a request to the Diamond Exchange for a temporary injunction to avoid conflicting decisions from the two courts.
"Court intervention in an internal arbitration proceeding of the stock exchange is indeed extremely rare," Yosef said.
"But here, when it is clear that it was the company that signed the agreements and the employee acted only as an employee, the case constitutes a clear exception, and therefore there is a real chance of legal intervention," he added.
"The goal is for the company to bear responsibility for its transactions, and not for the salaried employee, who is not supposed to pay a debt created by its business activity," he said.
Palestinian terrorists fired two rockets toward Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip on Sunday amid the expansion of Israel Defense Forces ground operations in the coastal enclave, the IDF confirmed.
Following the alerts that were activated in Kissufim, two launches were identified from the central Gaza Strip toward Israeli territory. One was intercepted and the other fell in an open area," the military stated.
"There were no casualties," the IDF added.
The attack from Gaza activated air-raid sirens in Kibbutz Kissufim, an Israeli agricultural community near the border of some 300 residents.
Israel's Magen David Adom medical emergency response group also announced it received "no reports regarding impacts or casualties."
The rocket attack on the Jewish state came shortly after the IDF announced it had launched extensive ground operations as part of "Operation Gideon's Chariots" against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.
“Over the past 24 hours, forces of the IDF’s Southern Command, both regular and reserve, have started a large-scale ground operation across the northern and southern Gaza Strip as part of the beginning of Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” the army said in a statement.
"So far, the forces have eliminated dozens of terrorists, destroyed terrorist infrastructure both above and below ground, and are now taking control of strategic areas within the Strip," the IDF continued.
The military noted that over the past week, the Israeli Air Force attacked more than 670 Hamas terror targets across the Strip in an attempt to "disrupt enemy preparations and support the ground operation."
Among the targets attacked by IAF fighter jets were weapons depots, terrorist operatives, tunnels and anti-tank launch positions, it said.
"The IDF will continue to operate against terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip as necessary to protect the citizens of the State of Israel," it added.
On May 13, the Israeli Air Force intercepted two rockets fired from the Strip. A third rocket landed in open area, the IDF said, adding that no casualties were reported in the terrorist aerial assault. Iranian-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad took responsibility for the rocket launches.
The Israel Defense Forces has launched extensive ground operations as part of "Operation Gideon's Chariots" against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip, the military announced on Sunday afternoon.
"Over the past 24 hours, forces of the IDF's Southern Command, both regular and reserve, have started a large-scale ground operation across the northern and southern Gaza Strip as part of the beginning of Operation Gideon’s Chariots," the army said in a statement.
"So far, the forces have eliminated dozens of terrorists, destroyed terrorist infrastructure both above and below ground, and are now taking control of strategic areas within the Strip," the IDF continued.
The military noted that over the past week, the Israeli Air Force attacked more than 670 Hamas terror targets across the Strip in an attempt to "disrupt enemy preparations and support the ground operation."
Among the targets attacked by IAF fighter jets were weapons depots, terrorist operatives, tunnels and anti-tank launch positions, it said.
The IDF said that during the current ground operation, the Air Force will continue its support to troops operating throughout the coastal enclave.
"The IDF will continue to operate against terrorist groups in the Gaza Strip as necessary to protect the citizens of the State of Israel," it added.
Jerusalem earlier on Sunday announced that it was pursuing a broader deal for ending the war, one that includes the release of all hostages, the expulsion of Hamas terrorists and the disarmament of the enclave.
The Israeli negotiating team in Doha is actively working to exhaust every opportunity to reach an agreement, the Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced. Talks are being conducted under multiple frameworks, including one proposed by U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
Witkoff's deal reportedly envisions a multi-stage agreement, beginning with a temporary ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages, followed by reciprocal steps such as the release of jailed Palestinian terrorists and further negotiations aimed at a permanent cessation of hostilities.
On Saturday morning, Defense Minister Israel Katz stated: "With the launch of Operation Gideon's Chariots in Gaza, led with great force by IDF command, the Hamas delegation in Doha announced a return to negotiations on a hostage deal, contrary to the intransigent stance they had taken up until that moment."
He continued, "The heroism of IDF soldiers, the unity of the people, and the determination of the political leadership increase the chances of bringing back the hostages." Fifty-eight hostages, living and dead, are believed to remain in Gaza, 590 days after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks.
The current military campaign will continue "as long as necessary" to neutralize Hamas’s remaining strongholds, military officials have said.
Defense Minister Israel Katz on Sunday called on law enforcement authorities to prosecute an Arab-Israeli man who was filmed spitting on a female Israel Defense Forces officer on a public bus.
"The despicable terrorist who assaulted and spat on a uniformed IDF officer must be punished to the fullest extent," Katz wrote in a post on social media, adding, "We will not allow harm to come to our soldiers."
"I trust the law enforcement authorities pursue him to the fullest extent of the law, so that it is clear: Anyone who harms IDF soldiers will pay a heavy price," the defense minister said.
The IDF captain was spat on while traveling to the Manpower Directorate base in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan earlier on Sunday.
"Someone was sitting next to me listening to videos in Arabic. At some point, I moved to another seat because I was uncomfortable hearing that music," the officer, identified as Capt. Tamar, told reporters.
"I feel like he spat on me just because I was in uniform. I'm disturbed by the audacity—that this can happen in the heart of the city, in broad daylight, on the way to base," she said.
Following the incident, the driver reportedly stopped the bus and approached the officer, urging her to file a complaint with police.
Israeli Minister of Transport, National Infrastructure and Road Safety Miri Regev said she instructed ministry security officers to contact the police "and ensure the perpetrator is apprehended.
"I was horrified to see the shocking footage of a savage spitting in the face of an IDF officer," the Cabinet minister added.
The Israel Police has since opened an investigation into the event. As of Sunday afternoon, the identity of the suspect was unknown, the Kan public broadcaster reported.
Following the incident, the Israeli Bus Drivers' Organization reminded its members that "in such cases, they must stop the journey immediately and wait for police forces to arrive. We call on the police to act swiftly, locate the suspect, and prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law."
Since the start of the Swords of Iron war on Oct. 7, 2023, there has been a growing radicalization among segments of the country's Arab minority. Security officials have investigated more than 80 cases involving citizens. There have been 26 cases of Israelis swearing allegiance to ISIS and other terrorist groups, Kan reported back in March.
The Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) moved to detain 177 citizens for questioning in cases involving national security in 2024, the public broadcaster said.
Two illegal aliens were caught on Sunday morning in the Jordan Valley community of Yardena when a resident found them in his garden. They had crossed the Jordanian border and the entire moshav before being discovered.
The two illegal aliens, who were Sri Lankan, aroused the resident’s suspicion after asking for water, Israeli news site N12 reported. He alerted police, who summoned soldiers to the scene.
Nir, the Yardena resident, told N12 that he was getting his children ready for school when he saw them. "They didn't look threatening, but like ordinary workers," he said. They asked for water and to charge their phone.
"I brought them coffee and cookies, and my wife began to be suspicious," Nir said. He tried to question them regarding where they worked. They stammered.
"I understood that they were from Sri Lanka but I didn't understand what was going on here. I called the community policeman, who connected me to the army. They arrived very quickly and took the reins," he said.
An IDF spokesperson said that there was no fear of a security incident. The army confirmed that the two infiltrators were migrant workers, adding that they had been transferred to the security forces for further questioning. "The incident is being investigated," the spokesperson said.
The incident follows a similar one on Saturday morning, when a Jordanian, who turned out to be a migrant worker, crossed the border and infiltrated the area of Kibbutz Sha'ar HaGolan and Kibbutz Masada in the Jordan Valley. Civilians caught the intruder. No alert was activated when he crossed the border.
The heads of the regional councils along the Jordan border have warned for years that the border is porous and can be easily crossed.
In October of last year, two terrorists from Jordan, members of the Muslim Brotherhood, crossed the border and carried out a shooting attack near Moshav Neot HaKikar in the northern Arava Valley. Two soldiers were wounded before the terrorists were killed.
In 2024, Giora Eiland, former head of the Israel National Security Council, warned of a resurgence of terrorist activity from Jordan. "Jordan is marked by Iran as the next country in which it will establish a military terror infrastructure against Israel," Eiland warned Ynet.
The Israeli Immigration Policy Center, an NGO founded in 2012 to “promote immigration policy which serves the strategic interests of the State of Israel,” issued a report in 2023 warning that illegal immigration across the Jordan border was on the threshold of an exponential increase, similar to what happened through the Egyptian border before Israel built a large barrier in 2010.
"All indications" are that the Israeli Air Force killed Hamas terrorist leader in the Gaza Strip Mohammed Sinwar on May 13, Defense Minister Israel Katz told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Sunday.
Katz spoke shortly after Saudi Arabia's Al-Hadath news outlet reported that Sinwar's corpse, as well as that of Hamas Rafah Brigade commander Mohammed Shabanah, were discovered in a tunnel.
Katz told lawmakers that while official confirmation was pending, the available intelligence points to their deaths.
Earlier on Sunday, unnamed Israeli sources told Ynet that while they could not confirm that Sinwar's remains were recovered, Jerusalem believes he was killed in the Israel Defense Forces' May 13 airstrike targeting a Hamas command hub in the Khan Yunis Governorate in Gaza's south.
Multiple Israeli Air Force fighter jets were involved in the strike on the base under the European Hospital in Al-Fukhari, a town the Khan Yunis Governate, which employed bunker-busting munitions to penetrate the subterranean complex.
Israeli sources told reporters last week that the site housed dozens of high-ranking Hamas officials and was being used to coordinate attacks.
Sinwar was a senior Hamas commander and brother of Yahya Sinwar, the former leader of the organization in the Strip, who was killed by Israeli soldiers on Oct. 16. Following his brother’s death, Mohammed Sinwar served as the group's top "military" leader.
In a separate attack in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza on Sunday, the IDF targeted Zakaria Sinwar, another brother of Yahya and Muhammad Sinwar. His fate was not immediately clear.
According to Qatar's Al Jazeera channel, Zakaria Sinwar was critically wounded in the assault. Doctors reportedly resumed efforts to save him after signs of life were detected when he was transferred to the morgue.
Yahya Sinwar was the mastermind behind the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in southern Israel, in which some 1,200 people, primarily civilians, were murdered, thousands more were wounded and 251 kidnapped.
Israel on Sunday announced that it is pursuing a broader framework for ending the war in Gaza, one that includes the release of all hostages, the expulsion of Hamas terrorists, and the disarmament of the Strip.
The Israeli negotiating team in Doha, Qatar, is actively working to exhaust every opportunity to reach an agreement, the Prime Minister’s Office said. Talks are being conducted under multiple frameworks, including one proposed by U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
The Witkoff outline reportedly envisions a multi-stage agreement, beginning with a temporary ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages, followed by reciprocal steps such as the release of Palestinian security prisoners and further negotiations aimed at a permanent cessation of hostilities.
On Saturday morning, Defense Minister Israel Katz stated: “With the launch of Operation Gideon’s Chariots in Gaza, led with great force by IDF command, the Hamas delegation in Doha announced a return to negotiations on a hostage deal, contrary to the intransigent stance they had taken up until that moment.”
He continued, “The heroism of IDF soldiers, the unity of the people, and the determination of the political leadership increase the chances of bringing back the hostages.”
The renewed diplomatic efforts coincide with the launch of Phase 1 of "Operation Gideon’s Chariots," the next stage in the IDF’s campaign to destroy Hamas’s governing and military capabilities in Gaza. According to the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, Israeli forces have carried out coordinated attacks on Hamas infrastructure in Jabalia, Gaza City's Zeitoun neighborhood and Rafah—areas considered key to the group’s operations.
In Rafah, troops have expanded ground operations and conducted targeted strikes, including the destruction of cross-border tunnels. The campaign will continue “as long as necessary” to neutralize Hamas's remaining strongholds, military officials have said.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog attended the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Sunday, hailing the pontiff’s call for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas as “a powerful and compassionate signal from the heart of the Catholic world.”
Herzog wore a sticker on his suit bearing the number “590,” marking the number of days the remaining hostages have been held in Gaza, as a gesture of solidarity with their families and a public appeal for their immediate release.
On Sunday, Leo made one of his first public appeals by urging the immediate release of the 58 hostages, living and dead, still held in Gaza—now 590 days since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks—and for allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, whose situation, the pope said, “deeply saddens” him.
“I am grateful for the fact that one of the pope’s first acts was to call for the immediate return of all our sisters and brothers,” Herzog wrote on social media. “In all my meetings with world leaders, I carry with me the urgent call to bring all our hostages home, immediately.”
During a brief exchange, Herzog thanked Leo in person for beginning his papacy with a message focused on the hostages. He also urged the pontiff to maintain his advocacy and help renew interfaith dialogue.
The Israeli president expressed hope that the new papacy would “usher in a new era of cooperation between all faiths” and strengthen Jewish-Christian-Muslim ties in the Holy Land. He extended an invitation for Leo to visit Israel, saying it would be “a powerful symbol of this important bond.”
“I look forward to working together to deepen the historic ties between Israel and the Holy See,” Herzog said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday congratulated the pope, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69, for being elected head of the Catholic Church.
“Congratulations to Pope Leo XIV and the Catholic community worldwide. I wish the first pope from the United States success in fostering hope and reconciliation among all faiths,” wrote Netanyahu on X.
Donald Trump is not frustrated with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the U.S. president said, addressing a question from Fox News anchor Bret Baier during a May 16 interview following his tourof three Arab Gulf states.
Trump told Baier that it was important to keep the Arab states "in our fold. ... They're back loving the United States again. That was a full embrace."
The trip, which skipped the Jewish state, had been characterized in the media as "shrugging off" or "sidelining" Israel, particularly as Trump appeared to ignore Israeli concerns about Qatar, a funder of Islamist groups, and met with Syria's new leader, President Ahmed al-Sharaa, whom Netanyahu's government said is a "jihadist."
However, Trump expressed empathy for Netanyahu in the wide-ranging interview with Baier, saying Israel's prime minister is dealing with a difficult situation.
"[Netanyahu] is an angry man, and he should be because of October 7. And he's been hurt badly by that. But in another way, he's been sort of helped because I think he's fought hard and bravely," Trump said.
Trump had already attempted to allay fears that his Mideast trip meant a change in the U.S.-Israel relationship.
On Air Force One from Saudi Arabia to Qatar, Trump told reporters he wasn't shunting Israel aside. “No not at all,” he said. “This is good for Israel, having a relationship like I have with these countries, Middle Eastern countries, essentially all of them.
"You have to remember, there was an October 7 that everyone forgets. It was one of the most violent days in the history of the world, not the Middle East, the world. When you look at the tapes, and the tapes are there for everyone to see," Trump told Baier, referring to video of the massacre filmed and distributed on social media by the Hamas terrorists.
Tehran exports ‘terror and death'
Of Iran's efforts to obtain nuclear weapons, the president said, "We're gonna have a solution one way or the other. It's either going to be violent or not violent. And I far prefer nonviolent ..., but they're not going to have a nuclear weapon."
Trump pointed out that Iran sits on one of the largest oil reserves in the world. He questioned why a country that has so much oil needs to invest in so-called civilian nuclear projects. "I think nuclear is fine. ... If you have a country with no oil. But if you're sitting on one of the largest piles of oil in the world, why are you talking about putting up nuclear civil," he said.
In his speech in Riyadh, Trump said Iran exports “terror and death all over the world” and called it the “most destructive force” in the region. He urged Saudi Arabia to join the Abraham Accords.
Of the situation in the Gaza Strip, he said, "Gaza is a nasty place. It's been that way for years," noting that it erupts into violence "every 10 years."
Trump reiterated his plan to create a "freedom zone" in the Strip, an idea he referenced during a press conference in Qatar on the third day of his tour. “I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good, make it a freedom zone, let the United States get involved and make it just a freedom zone," he said.
The transformation would involve the removal of Gaza's population, estimated at 2 million, to other countries while the Strip is rebuilt.
“[I]f you take the people, the Palestinians, and move them around to different countries, and you have plenty of countries that will do that …, you really have a freedom zone …, a zone where people aren’t going to be killed every day,” he said during a meeting with Netanyahu in the Oval Office on April 8.
Trump told Baier that the Gulf states would be part of that solution.
"These are people [the Gazans] that want to be in the Middle East. ... They love the Middle East. ... They didn't have to go to Sweden, Germany, these different countries. They could have been home in the Middle East, if somebody had their brains, to build beautiful communities. You know, 1.9 million is a lot of people, but it's not a lot of people, relatively [speaking]."
There is no shortage of human capital in Israel, but unlike neighboring countries, especially in the Persian Gulf, we simply could not find oil reserves that provide the economic and energy independence that is so necessary to survive in the jungle of the Middle East.
After hundreds of wells were drilled across the country to try and locate black gold, the trickle that came out of the Heletz field became a symbol of the failed attempt to find it. In the absence of natural resources, the State of Israel developed human resources. Thus, Israel became a high-tech powerhouse that depended on imported coal, oil and gas.
Then suddenly came the miracle of natural gas. Huge reserves were discovered under the seabed that are nothing less than an economic miracle that ensures the energy independence of Israel for decades to come. Israel also turned into a major player in the energy market as a gas exporter to Jordan, Egypt and other countries that now themselves depend on Israel for their energy needs.
The search
It’s not easy to extract oil or gas from the bowels of the earth. When it comes to the seabed, the process becomes many times more complex. NewMed Energy (formerly Delek Drilling) is a public energy partnership specializing in the exploration, development, production and sale of natural gas. In the last twenty years, the company has been at the center of the discoveries of all natural gas fields in Israel (Tamar 2009, Leviathan 2010, Tanin 2011, Karish 2013).
It has also been a central partner in the development and production of natural gas in the Tethys Sea, Tamar and Leviathan projects. The company owns 45% of the Leviathan reservoir, the largest natural gas reservoir in Israel, as well as other reservoirs. It also explores abroad, such as in Morocco and Bulgaria. Today it is one of the 35 largest companies traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
Yossi Abu, the CEO of NewMed Energy. Photo by Inbal Marmeri.
Impact on energy costs
"Natural gas caused a revolution," explains Yossi Abu, 47, the CEO of NewMed Energy. "I'm talking about energy, economic, geopolitical and environmental security."
Abu, who lives in Beit Nekofa, a moshav in central Israel, has been the company's CEO since 2011. He led the development of the Tamar and Leviathan gas reservoirs and the regional export agreements for the export of natural gas from Israel to Egypt and Jordan.
"In terms of energy security, natural gas has changed the energy reality in Israel. In the past, Israel was completely dependent on imported energy sources, but today it holds strategic assets that guarantee its energy independence," he observes. "The gas framework approved ten years ago enabled the development of the Leviathan and Karish reservoirs, and without it, Israel would have suffered from an acute shortage of independent energy sources.”
“The existence of natural gas has caused a dramatic reduction in energy costs,” Abu explains of the economic implications. “Thanks to the discovery of natural gas in the past decade, the price of electricity has dropped by 15%, while in Europe its prices have increased significantly."
He adds, "It is enough to look at energy prices in Europe, which soared due to the Ukraine-Russia war, and compare them to Israel, where the Swords of Iron War did not cause electricity prices to rise. In addition, we pay billions to the state. In the past decade alone, the natural gas industry has paid the state about 25 billion shekels, and these amounts are increasing every year.”
Impact on the environment
According to Abu, the gas miracle also has an important environmental impact. "Using natural gas to generate electricity is a cleaner substitute than coal and diesel. Reducing the pollution created by the use of coal and diesel allows us to live in a healthier environment and reduces environmental costs."
"From a geopolitical perspective," Abu continues, "the export agreements signed with Jordan and Egypt have strengthened strategic ties and relations with neighboring countries. Even during the current war, exports to Jordan and Egypt continued, and this contributes to regional stability."
"In the security context, a significant part of national security is energy security," he states. "During the Swords of Iron War, the president of Colombia announced a halt to coal exports to Israel. If we did not have our own gas, it could have led to widespread power outages. In practice, this did not affect the electricity sector, which continued to operate as usual thanks to our natural gas reserves, without dependence on other countries.
Regional partnerships
“To these we can add the strategic tie created following the Abraham Accords in both the Emirates and Morocco, where we, an Israeli company, hold a license to explore for natural gas. Azerbaijan also recently entered into activity in the Israeli energy sector. SOCAR, the national oil and gas company of Azerbaijan, is going outside of Azerbaijan for the first time to actively explore for gas in partnership with us, NewMed Energy, and the British company BP."
He continues, "Together we won the fourth tender for a license to explore for natural gas in Israel's economic waters in Area I. And there is another connection to the Abraham Accords. In 2021, Abu led the sale of Newmed Energy's holdings in the Tamar reservoir to Mubadala Petroleum of Abu Dhabi—the largest single deal signed following the Abraham Accords."
Comparing reserves
Golda Meir once said, ironically, "God led the Israelites for 40 years in the desert to the only place in the Middle East where there is no oil."
So it's true, we didn't find oil, but we did find gas. The amount of natural gas in Israel is about 1,000 BCM. Israel's annual consumption, on the other hand, is 13–14 BCM. This is similar to the 12 BCM Israel exports annually to Egypt (9 BCM) and Jordan (3 BCM). This means that we have huge reserves in relation to what Israel consumes, and will have enough for decades to come, while also allowing for exports. In relation to where we were 15 years ago and the regional situation, we are definitely a powerhouse.”
"But compared to other energy-producing countries, such as Qatar, whose exports are about 100 BCM, and Russia, where gas exports reached 200 BCM, Israel is a small producer that exports regionally. We are indeed players in the export market, but modest in the global arena.”
The battle over the gas deal
"The natural gas sector always suffers from high uncertainty. There were those who didn't believe that gas would be found; there were those who didn't believe that we would be able to export it; and in the end, reality surpassed all imagination," Abu says. "It may be hard to remember, but just a few years ago, there was a public struggle here on the gas issue. Protesters screamed 'Gas robbery!' at the Netanyahu government, claiming the state was being ripped off by the gas companies.”
A decade and a half later, it’s pretty clear who won. Net profit for the three largest gas companies operating in Israel (Energean, NewMed and Delek) for 2024 came to about $700 million. In contrast, the State of Israel made an estimated $1.3 billion from gas revenues in 2024. This works out to a 65% to 35% profit split. Considering the State of Israel doesn’t need to do any of the work and takes on none of the risk, this makes it an advantageous deal for the State.
Since Israel began profiting from gas production, it has collected almost $8 billion in revenues. Annual revenues are expected to double from $1.3 billion to $2.6 billion in the next few years. The annual budget of the State of Israel in 2023 was approximately $1.3 billion, so gas revenues accounted for about 1% of that. The current war has significantly increased the size of the state budget and so the growth in gas revenues will continue to represent about 1% of the budget in the near future.
The costs
It is neither easy nor cheap to search for gas, and even more difficult to search at sea. "The natural gas exploration process is a complex, lengthy, costly and risky process that energy companies bear. It is a process that combines research, advanced technology and rigorous risk management,” says Abu.
He adds, "The history of oil and gas exploration in Israel was full of disappointments. For decades, exploration attempts were made, but almost without success. The real change came when the state opened the exploration sector to the private market. The entry of private companies with financial strength, knowledge and a willingness to bear risk created an incentive for investment and perseverance, and it is this that produced results.”
The estimated cost of the development and production plan for the Aphrodite reservoir, of which Nomad Energy holds 30%, is estimated at $4 billion."
He estimates the cost of developing the next phase of the Leviathan reservoir at $2.4 billion.
"Looking to the future, I believe that the era of artificial intelligence will revolutionize the field of natural gas exploration. On the geological level, it already enables more precise analysis of seismic surveys, improved forecasting processes, and the detection of underground geological structures," Abu says. "Developments in the field will lead to the ability to learn and produce information quickly, reduce risks in drilling and shorten decision-making schedules."
This article was originally published in Hebrew by Olam Katan.
