Ashalim power station

The Ashalim power station is a future solar power station to be established in the Negev desert near the kibbutz of Ashalim, (south of the district city of Be'er Sheva) in Israel. The station will provide 250 Megawatt of electricity (2.5% of the Israeli consumption), which makes it the largest of its kind.

The station will combine 3 kinds of energy: solar thermal energy, photovoltaic energy, and gas burning.

Reasons for building the power station

According to a press release of the National Infrastructure Minister of Israel, the establishment has several motivations:

1. Economic motivation: Reducing imports thus balancing the trade and releasing foreign currency.
2. Political motivation: Reducing strategic dependence on foreign energy sources.
3. Environmental motivation: Reducing contamination levels.
4. Scientific motivation: pushing forward local technology and science, adapting new technologies from abroad.