Rutenberg power station

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Rutenberg power station (תחנת הכוח רוטנברג) is an operating power station of at least 1675-megawatts (MW) in Ashkelon, Southern District, Israel with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Rotenberg power station, Ashkelon power station.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Rutenberg power station	Ashkelon, Ashkelon, Southern District, Israel	31.630697, 34.520237 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Project D Unit 1, Project D Unit 2, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 4: 31.630697, 34.520237

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	CHP	Start year	Retired year
Project D Unit 1	Cancelled	coal: unknown	630	unknown	–	–	–
Project D Unit 2	Cancelled	coal: unknown	630	unknown	–	–	–
Unit 1, timepoint 1	Retired	coal: bituminous	575	subcritical	not found	1991	2022
Unit 1, timepoint 2	Construction	fossil gas: natural gas	575	steam turbine	not found	2024 (planned)	–
Unit 2, timepoint 1	Operating	coal: bituminous	575	subcritical	not found	1990	2026 (planned)
Unit 2, timepoint 2	Pre-construction	fossil gas: natural gas	575	steam turbine	not found	2026 (planned)	–
Unit 3, timepoint 1	Operating	coal: bituminous	550	subcritical	not found	2001	2026 (planned)
Unit 3, timepoint 2	Shelved	fossil gas: natural gas	550	steam turbine	not found	–	–
Unit 4, timepoint 1	Operating	coal: bituminous	550	subcritical	not found	2000	2026 (planned)
Unit 4, timepoint 2	Shelved	fossil gas: natural gas	550	steam turbine	not found	–	–

CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Project D Unit 1	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Project D Unit 2	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 1, timepoint 1	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 1, timepoint 2	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 2, timepoint 1	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 2, timepoint 2	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 3, timepoint 1	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 3, timepoint 2	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 4, timepoint 1	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]
Unit 4, timepoint 2	Israel Electric Corp Ltd [100%]	Government of Israel [99.8%]; other [0.2%]

Unit-level fuel conversion details:

Unit 1: Conversion under construction from coal to fossil gas in 2024.

Unit 2: Conversion in pre-construction phase from coal to fossil gas in 2026.

Unit 3: Planned conversion from coal to fossil gas was shelved.

Unit 4: Planned conversion from coal to fossil gas was shelved.

Background

Rutenberg power station, named after Pinhas Rutenberg, is owned and operated by the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC). The power station has a total installed capacity of 2,250 MW. It is arranged in two blocks, Blocks A and B, each containing two power generating units (2 x 575 MW and 2 x 550 MW). Construction began in the early 1980s, after completion of the first phase of the Orot Rabin power station near Hadera. Phase A became operational in 1990-1991, and Phase B in 2000-2001. Coal was supplied by train from the Port of Ashdod until an on-site deepwater coal pier was completed in 2000.

In October 2023, the power station had caught on fire and sustained damaged after being struck by an alleged rocket attack from Gaza.

Jetty

The power station's coal jetty is designed to moor ships up to 200,000 tons and allows for smaller ships of 60,000 tons. All the seaside services are reportedly provided by Ashkelon port which is managed by the Europe Asia Pipeline Company (EAPC) (likely formerly the Eilat Ashkelon Pipeline Company).

As per IEC's 2020 financial report, negotiations were being held with EAPC "for the regulation of all the Company’s activities at the site following the law that regulated the continued operations of EAPC."

On March 13, 2023, a crane on the coal jetty collapsed under high winds. Two people died in the accident. As damage to the jetty impacted the ability to unload coal for the power station, the IEC reportedly requested a permit amendment that would allow the Orot Rabin power station to transfer approximately 6,000 tons of coal per day to the Rutenberg station by truck. In May 2023, coal transport to the station was temporarily stopped by the Ministry of Environmental Protection due to safety violations, but resumed a week later.

Planned retirements and conversions

In December 2018, the Israeli government said it would stop the use of coal by 2030. A 2018 IEC report contemplated "[c]ompleting the conversion of a coal production unit in Ashkelon to natural gas as a pilot program" by 2023.

Starting in November 2019, the Israeli government said it would stop the use of coal sooner, by 2025.

As of 2019, one unit at the Rutenberg power station was reportedly set to be closed by 2022, while the other three units at the facility were set to be converted to use natural gas by the end of 2024.

Based on IEC's financial reports for 2018-2021, conversion plans are still underway. In November 2021, the CEO of the Ashkelon Environmental Association of Cities and the director of the power station discussed when the plant may run on gas. IEC's H1 2022 financial report states that Unit 1 was shut down on March 28, 2022 to begin the gas conversion project. Furthermore, IEC's investor presentation as of December 2022 states that "in accordance with the Minister of Energy's policy principles, published November 24, 2019, the units will gradually convert to using natural gas until 2025 and no later than 2026."

The South Natural Gas Company and government company Natural Gas Routes to Israel (NTGZ) have been involved in disagreements and litigation over gas supply and pipelines.

According to the IEC's 2022 annual financial report, the budget completion of the conversion project was 78% for Unit 1 and 19% for Unit 2 as of December 2022.

The IEC's Q1 2023 financial report, which appeared to be published in June 2023, noted that the company's Board of Directors had decided to continue the gas conversion project only for Units 1-2 at Rutenberg power station, as most of the equipment for those units had already been secured and piping had already been installed. Conversions for Units 3-4 would be suspended "...until a decision is made by the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure to recognize in principle the costs of the project..." Conversion plans at the Orot Rabin power station would also be suspended. The report further stated that if a decision was made to carry out the conversion project in its entirety, an updated completion date would be provided.

A media article also from early June 2023 reported that coal-fired units were expected to operate until at least 2030, according to a letter from Nega, the government company that manages the power station.

In an investor presentation from December 2023, the IEC stated "[o]n June 2023, the company's [Board of Directors] decided to continue the procurement process for converting units 3-4" at Rutenberg.

Permitting

The air emissions permit for Unit 3 was originally set to expire in March 2020. In January 2020, the IEC requested an 8.5 month postponement so that it could install a selective catalytic reduction (SCR), which would reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from the unit. The Ministry rejected the request but granted a 2.5 month extension beyond the original closure date, and the IEC then requested a revision of its emissions permit.

IEC then followed up saying the coronavirus crisis left it unable to work on Unit 3 as it had planned, and asked the Ministry to reconsider its original request for the 8.5 month closure delay. In addition, because that period would end just before winter, IEC claimed it would need an additional 3.5 months on top of that. The Ministry noted that in order to approve that request, the IEC would have to disable some of the coal-fired units at IEC's Orot Rabin power station which don't have scrubbers.

The permit appears to have been amended starting May 27, 2020.

Jellyfish and sea turtles

Jellyfish were reported to have caused problems for the power station in July 2019 and 2020 by blocking up the power station's operating systems.

In September 2024, employees at Rutenberg rescued a sea turtle that had been swept into the cooling system at the power plant.

Project D Expansion

Expansion project proposed

A Phase D expansion was approved in 2008. According to a 2010 story in the Jerusalem Post, the project was later changed to be a gas-fired project.

However, in a 2012 slide presentation by IEC, Project D was still characterized as a coal plant. The presentation described Project D as comprising two 630 MW units to be commissioned in 2018 and 2019.

France’s national Électricité de France (EDF) had considered building the plant with Israel, but in 2014 it was reported that IEC would build the power station independently and hold 100% of the ownership. It was also stated that the power station would be dual fuel.

In December 2015, Israel's energy minister said instead of the planned coal units, he would promote a feasibility study for building a nuclear energy power station in order to meet government targets for reducing carbon emissions. In April 2016, the Israeli Cabinet approved a plan to invest US$212 million in loans and grants for increased energy efficiency to “lead to a reduction in sickness caused by pollution.” The government also flagged the prospect of reducing coal use by switching to gas and increasing renewables. The decision suggested the proposed 1,260 MW dual-fuel Project D plant, if it proceeds, is likely to be gas-fired.

Expansion project cancelled

In November 2016, the Electricity Authority delivered to the Minister of National Energy the recommendation to cancel Project D.

In April 2017, Israel's energy and water minister Yuval Steinitz said the country plans to reduce coal use to less than 10% of the fuel mix in the production of electricity by 2025.

Opposition

In January 2011, Greenpeace organized protests against the proposed plant. Activists climbed the Jerusalem Chords Bridge and unveiled an 18-meter banner calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop the project. The posters, which were placed in view of the Prime Minister's office, read: "Bibi stop the coal plant."

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datasets, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.