Israel has signed a 15-year, $775 million deal with the self-ruling Palestinian Authority to put electricity distribution for Palestinians in the West Bank in PA hands and build four power plants to that end, officials said Tuesday.
The nearly 3 million Palestinians living in the West Bank currently rely on Israel for their electricity, with neighboring Jordan providing power to the Jericho area in the Jordan River Valley.
The deal does not apply to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, whose 2 million Palestinians suffer frequent blackouts due to severe fuel shortages and continued power-sharing disputes between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.
As part of the new deal, the PA will pay off a 915 million shekel ($253 million) debt to the Israel Electric Corporation, while taking charge of the distribution of electricity to West Bank Palestinians.
The IEC will sell power to the Palestinian Electricity Transmission Company through four plants to be built by the IEC and the PA. The Palestinian company will own the power plants and channel the electricity supply.
"The agreement frees the Palestinian electricity sector of complete Israeli control, which has lasted for decades," the head of the PA's Civil Affairs Agency, Hussein al-Sheikh, said in a statement.
Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said the agreement paves the way for Palestinians to develop a modern power grid.
Israeli Finance Ministry Director General Shai Babad said the deal "brings about a new reality in the Palestinians' energy sector, reduces restrictions on electricity supply, strengthens economic stability and opens a new era in economic relations between the two sides."
