Friday, February 24, 2012
Print This PageIsrael to Demolish EU-Funded Renewables Projects
ISRAEL - Six EU-funded wind and solar energy projects which provide electricity for 600 West Bank Palestinians have been put on a ?demolition list? by Israel, allegedly in response to an EU heads of mission report which called for laws to prevent the financing of settlements.
West Bank project managers say the ?stop work? orders as "a first step to almost automatic demolition".
Elad Orian, the co-founder of Comet-ME, which oversaw the renewables projects on the ground, said that 400 people would be left completely without electricity if the demolition plan went ahead, but one village would still have access to an 'expensive, noisy and gas-guzzling' diesel generator.
?The people will be left without light or the ability to charge cellphones, which is the only means of communication there,? he told EurActiv.
In all, the project backed Comet-ME and the German group Medico International has built 15 solar plants and hybrid systems electrifying villages with a combined population of 1,500.
Shaab al-Buttum, one village facing renewable energy demolition, contains two wind turbines and 40 solar panels currently supply 40-60 kilowatt-hours of electricity a day.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle had discussed the issue with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Ninister Ehud Barak during a recent visit, a Westerwelle spokeswoman said.
?The German government together with its EU partners is watching the situation in ?Area C? very attentively,? the official said.
Area C is under full Israeli control, comprising some 60 per cent of the West Bank - and all of Israel?s settlements, which are considered illegal under international law.
?The government is concerned about the ?stop work? orders for energy systems that have been financed with German funds,? the official added.
TheBioenergySite News Desk
Source: http://www.thebioenergysite.com/news/10543/israel-to-demolish-eufunded-renewables-projects
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