“We support competition that challenges us and forces us to improve ourselves. We have become more efficient, we have improved, we have reduced manpower, and we know how to become significantly more efficient than our competitors,” says Doron Arbely, Chairman of the Israel Electric Corporation, in a special interview with “Maariv Weekend.”

According to him, “I am not looking only at the country’s energy security, but also at the consumer’s pocket. I want to ensure that competition has truly affected the consumer’s pocket. The very fact that the Israel Electric Corporation is involved in generation means that electricity prices paid by consumers, including you and me, are much lower.”

“Unlike private producers, the Israel Electric Corporation does not look only at the bottom line, but also at the situation of the consumer and energy security. Private producers are afraid of the Israel Electric Corporation. I ask why, and no one can provide an answer. If they want real competition, I say come. Let’s see who is better, who is less efficient, who is not good. Please, we are waiting.”

In response to the question of why, then, there is a need to raise electricity tariffs, Arbely replies that “electricity prices in Israel are among the lowest in the world. We are simply demanding that we be paid what we are entitled to by law. We are competing with our hands tied.” The Chairman of the Israel Electric Corporation added that “our work plans for the coming years are at an advanced stage. We are investing NIS 7–8 billion per year in preparing for the future electricity sector, including building power stations. The total investment volume by 2030 will amount to NIS 50 billion.”

According to him, “the money for investments will come from the company’s ongoing activity and from capital raises abroad and in Israel. This year we raised NIS 500 million abroad, and in Israel we raised about NIS 1 billion. Investors in Israel and around the world believe in us and in our ability to repay debt, and this is reflected in our credit rating, which remained stable during the war.”

In response to a question about his recommendations as a former head of the Tax Authority regarding tax policy, Arbely emphasized that “the handling of indirect and direct compensation was at the center of the Tax Authority’s activity and required significant manpower. The Authority is doing sacred work, but at the same time it is necessary to deepen tax collection from the public. It has many legal cases in dispute, and it is advisable to resolve them.”

“It is forbidden to impose additional taxes, even if the deficit grows, but rather to create certainty so that there will be more investment. Additional taxes suffocate the public and economic activity. I recommend, if possible, lowering VAT. It cannot be that every other day there is new regulation, because in the end businesses will flee and banks will not want to finance them.”