Government Projects & Tenders

Public-Private Partnership Projects

The Office of the Accountant General at the Ministry of Finance is responsible for the initiation and advancement of all projects conducted in collaboration with the private sector in the areas of transportation, water, energy and construction. Advancement of projects is done by means of an inter-ministerial tender committee headed by the Deputy Accountant General. The scope of the projects currently underway in the Department totals some $6 billion.

For more information, please contact the Ministry of Finance in New York .

Main Projects

Tel Aviv Light Train

A light train line from Petach Tikva to Bat Yam via Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan and Tel Aviv.

PFI project for financing, establishment, operation and maintenance of the first of four rail lines in the greater Tel Aviv area. The length of the line is 22 km, of which about 10 km are underground. The duration of the contract is 32 years, including six years for construction.

Road No. 531

PFI project for finance, construction, operation and maintenance of Road No. 531. The road will connect Road No. 6 (Cross Israel Highway) and Road No. 2 (Coastal Road). In addition, the project includes construction of railway tracks along the path of the road. The anticipated construction time for the road is 3.5 years.

Fast Lane to Tel Aviv

Project with BOT (Built, Operate, Transfer) financing for construction, operation and maintenance of the Fast Lane to Tel Aviv initiative. The additional route to be constructed is approximately 9 km and will serve as a public transportation route and toll lane for private vehicles. The minimum speed limit in the toll lane will be 70 km/hr. A “Park & Ride” lot will also be built close to Shapirim interchange. Operation of the project will include free shuttle buses from the parking area to the Ramat Gan Stock Exchange area and the Kirya compound in Tel Aviv.

The contract period, including establishment period, is 30 years, including a three-year construction period.

State Options on Highway No. 6

Derech Eretz Highways (1997) Ltd. (“DEC”) received the concession to construct and operate the toll road. The length of the road is 86 km and it began operating in 2004 with a concession period of 30 years. The toll system is electronic, allowing the traffic to flow freely. As part of the tender process, the State of Israel received 49 options from DEC. The State may exercise the options by itself or transfer it to a third party. Each option provides its holder the right to receive 1% of future distributions of shareholder loans and dividends. According to the facility agreement, distribution is not allowed until 2009. The current shareholders have the “right of first offer” to purchase the State options.

Road No. 22

Road No. 22 will be a toll road, executed as a PPP project. It will improve transportation for peripheral communities from the north of Israel to the city of Haifa and to the center of the country. Road No. 22 will be a 12 km. suburban road with two lanes in each directions. Future plans include three lanes in each direction, and five interchanges. The southern entrance to the road is located at the exit of the Carmel Tunnels project (currently under construction) significantly improving the exit from Haifa to the north of the country. The tender is for finance, design, construction, operation and maintenance of Toll Road No. 22 for 25 years.

Carmel Tunnels

Two pairs of tunnels, with an overall length of 6 km connecting Haifa’s southern access roads (near the Congress Center) to the Krayot junction (the Checkpost), with an exit at the Carmel (Rupin interchange). The project is to be established via the BOT method and the duration of the concession period is 35 years.

Jerusalem Light Train

Light Rail Train (LRT) with an overall length of 1.8 km, from Pisgat Zeev in the north to Mount Herzl, via the city center. The line is the first of eight LRT lines planned. For this project, a contract was signed with the concessionary for a period of 30 years, and financial negotiations between the concessionary and the awarding entity were completed.

Solar Power Plants in the Negev

Solar radiation in the Negev desert makes it a conducive environment for solar power plants. In September 2007 a tender committee was established to execute the construction of two solar-thermal power plants (110 MW each) and a photovoltaic power plant of 30 MW. The technologies that are being considered for the thermal power plant are: parabolic trough, solar tower or concentrating dish. PQ documents are expected to be published in January 2008.

Shafdan Desalination Plant

Fourth PPP Seawater Desalination Facility to be built south of Tel Aviv, along the Mediterranean coast.

BOT project for the finance, design, construction, operation and transfer to the State of a planned $100 million Reverse Osmosis (RO) Seawater Desalination plant. The concessionary will design, construct, operate and maintain the installation, and transfer it back to State ownership after 25 years.

PQ documents are expected to be launched by Q1 2008, tender documents by Q3 2008. Construction is expected to begin in Q2 2010.

Hadera Water Desalination / Purification Plant

A seawater desalination installation with BOT financing, to be constructed using the reverse osmosis method for the purification of 100 million cubic meters of water per annum. The installation is to be erected at the premises of the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) in Hadera. The concessionary shall design, construct, operate and maintain the installation, and transfer it back to State ownership after a period of 25 years.

Ashkelon Water Desalination / Purification Plant

The Ashkelon Water Desalination / Purification Plant will have an output of 100 million cubic meters per annum. It will be the largest installation of its type in the world. Entrepreneurial method for this project – BOT; accordingly, the winning company will construct the water desalination / purification installation at its own expense, as well as operate and maintain it for a period of 25 years. At the end of this period, ownership of the installation will be transferred to the State. It is based on “reverse osmosis” purification technology. The obligation of the winning company, VID, is to supply the State, as per demand, given quantities of potable water 12 months of the year, such that the cumulative output availability from the installation will total 100 million cubic meters per annum.

The main input for the operation of this seawater desalination / purification plant is energy; accordingly, the project initiators have contracted Delek Israel Fuel Company (one of the owners of IDE Technologies Ltd.) to construct a natural gas fuelpower supply station at its own expense, for an estimated cost of $70 million. The intended output of this power supply station is some 80 megawatts of electricity, of which the water desalination / purification plant is expected to consume about 50 megawatts. The contract period, including construction period is 24 years and 11 months.