From the Liveblog of
Monday, February 13, 2023
Knesset subcommittee formed to mull maintaining secrecy rules for state-owned oil firm
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSue Surkes is The Times of Israel's environment reporter
The Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee establishes a subcommittee, to meet tomorrow, to discuss whether secrecy rules for the state-owned Europe Asia Pipeline Company should be extended for another five years, as proposed by the cabinet.
The subcommittee will consist of five Knesset members – three from the coalition and two from the opposition — and will be headed by the committee chairman, Likud MK Yuli Edelstein.
The decision follows opposition to the extension voiced at the committee by Ze’ev Elkin of National Union and Yesh Atid’s Meir Cohen and Orna Barbivai.
The cabinet voted at the end of January to extend the secrecy rules, which date back to a time when the company’s predecessor transported oil from the shah’s Iran from the Eilat port on the Red Sea to Ashkelon on the Mediterranean coast, from where it could be shipped to Europe.
If the decision is approved, the law will continue to ban the publication of information about the EAPC or any of the three companies associated with the original Israel-Iran deal. The prohibited information includes the identity of shareholders, details about oil deals, company worth and management issues.
The few subjects that can be made public include the environment, planning and building, business registration, safety measures, permits, licenses and orders given by state bodies, supervision and enforcement carried out by bodies such as the Environmental Protection Ministry and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, and violations and malfunctions.
The Times of Israel Community.