US and Israel ink pact to expand energy cooperation

Israel and the United States have agreed to enhance their energy cooperation.

US Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Yuval Steinitz, Israel’s minister of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources, signed an amendment on Monday in Jerusalem to an existing agreement between the two energy departments, the US Energy Department said in a statement.

“Today, our nations further solidified our ongoing cooperation,” Moniz said. “The US and Israel will continue to foster research and development, drive down the costs of clean energy technologies and encourage collaboration between our nations’ top energy scientists.”

A post on the US Embassy in Tel Aviv’s Facebook page showed a video of the signing.

The agreement expands cooperative efforts on natural gas, cyber protection of energy infrastructure facilities, and programs for research and development of clean energy, power plant energy and water treatment.

Also, the pact recognizes the importance of developing advanced energy and water technologies to secure water and power supplies while protecting the environment and increasing energy efficiency within the two countries.

Moniz and Steinitz were continuing discussions that began last September.