In 2023, Israel’s electricity consumption relied overwhelmingly on fossil fuels, which supplied about 89% of the total. Gas accounted for roughly 71% and coal for another 18%. Low-carbon electricity supplied only about 11%, with solar providing just over 9% of the total and therefore most of Israel’s clean electricity. Expanding clean generation would help reduce dependence on fossil fuels and their associated climate and air-pollution impacts.

Is Electricity Growing in Israel?

Israel’s electricity consumption per person remained below its historical peak in 2023: at 8,039 kWh per person, it was 246 kWh, or about 3%, below the 2019 record. This indicates that consumption per person has not yet regained its peak, although these figures alone do not establish whether total national consumption is growing. Clean electricity showed much stronger progress: low-carbon generation reached 845 kWh per person, exceeding the previous record of 637 kWh in 2022 by 208 kWh, or roughly a third. This growth is encouraging, but further expansion is needed to support electrification and growing electricity demand, including from AI.

Suggestions

Israel should accelerate solar deployment while considering nuclear electricity as a complementary source of low-carbon generation. Nearby Cyprus generates about 23% of its electricity from solar, while the sunny US states of Nevada and California achieve about 35% and 31%, respectively—useful examples for expanding rooftop and larger-scale solar installations. For nuclear development, Israel could learn from the United Arab Emirates, where nuclear supplies about 20% of electricity, and from France, where it provides roughly two-thirds. Combining expanded solar with nuclear generation, stronger grids and storage would help Israel build a larger, cleaner electricity supply.

History

Israel’s recorded low-carbon electricity gains began modestly in the early 2010s, with annual solar additions of about 0.1–0.3 TWh between 2011 and 2015, followed by 0.4 TWh in 2016. Wind contributed an additional 0.2 TWh in 2017, while solar growth was just 0.1 TWh in 2018. Solar expansion accelerated substantially from 2019 through 2022, adding around 0.8–1 TWh each year. Over that period, wind recorded small gains alongside a 0.1 TWh decline in 2020, when biofuels added 0.1 TWh. In 2023, progress strengthened further: solar generation increased by 1.6 TWh and wind by 0.4 TWh, making it the strongest year for combined clean-electricity additions in the supplied record.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade