The Israel Ports Authority (רשות הספנות והנמלים) is the governmental agency which supervises and regulates the operation of Israel's seaports in
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
,
Ashdod
Ashdod ( he, ''ʾašdōḏ''; ar, أسدود or إسدود ''ʾisdūd'' or '' ʾasdūd'' ; Philistine: 𐤀𐤔𐤃𐤃 *''ʾašdūd'') is the sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District, it lies on the Mediterran ...
and
Eilat
Eilat ( , ; he, אֵילַת ; ar, إِيلَات, Īlāt) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of , a busy port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan ...
. It is located in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
.
History
The authority was set up on July 1, 1961, under the Ports Authority Law 5721-1961. On July 26, 1988, the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
approved an amendment to the Ports Authority Law, merging
Israel Railways
Israel Railways Ltd. , dba Israel Railways ( he, רַכֶּבֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Rakevet Yisra'el''), is the state-owned principal railway company responsible for all inter-city, commuter, and freight rail transport in Israel. Isr ...
into the Authority, henceforth to be known as the Israel Ports and Railways Authority. In 2002, Israel Railways was turned into a new
state company
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a Government, government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn Profit (econom ...
and separated from the Ports Authority.
Responsibilities
The duties are to plan, construct, develop, manage, maintain, and operate the ports. The Ports Authority law defines the Authority as a government corporation competent to acquire all rights, make all undertakings, and act as a litigant in all legal proceedings and a party to all contracts. It also stipulates that the Authority must run the ports as commercially viable enterprises and specifies those matters that require Government approval - development budgets, changes in tariffs, etc.
Governance
The Ports Authority Council is appointed by the Government on recommendation of the Transport Minister. Of its 17 members, ten represent the public, and seven represent government ministries. Since 2011, former
Mossad
Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...
chief
Meir Dagan
Aluf (Major General) Meir Dagan ( he, מאיר דגן; 30 January 1945 – 17 March 2016) was an Israel Defense Forces Major General (reserve) and Director of the Mossad.
Personal life and education
Meir Huberman (later Dagan) was born on a tr ...
is the current Director of the Israel Port Authority.
Dagan died of cancer on 17 March 2016 at the age of 71.
Competition and privatization
In the beginning of the 21st century, the government of Israel instructed the Ports Authority to take steps aimed at increasing competition in the seaports field in the country. As part of this effort,
Israel Shipyards
Israel Shipyards is one of the largest shipbuilding and repair facilities in the eastern Mediterranean. The company also operates the first and only privately owned port in Israel.
The company’s facilities are located at the Kishon Port (part ...
was granted a permit to operate a small private port on its premises near the Port of Haifa, and the operation of each public port was handed to newly-created state companies in hopes increasing competition between
Ashdod
Ashdod ( he, ''ʾašdōḏ''; ar, أسدود or إسدود ''ʾisdūd'' or '' ʾasdūd'' ; Philistine: 𐤀𐤔𐤃𐤃 *''ʾašdūd'') is the sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District, it lies on the Mediterran ...
and
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
ports.
Unfortunately, not enough of the desired competitive outcome was achieved due to the
oligopolistic
An oligopoly (from Greek ὀλίγος, ''oligos'' "few" and πωλεῖν, ''polein'' "to sell") is a market structure in which a market or industry is dominated by a small number of large sellers or producers. Oligopolies often result from ...
market position, historical labor union obligations, and limited capacity of the two existing major ports. As a result of this situation, in the middle of the 2010s, the Ports Authority embarked on a NIS7.5 billion (appx. US$2 billion) investment program to construct large new shipping terminals at both Haifa and Ashdod ports and held a bid for private companies to operate the new terminals for a period of 25 years beginning in the year 2021.
Shanghai International Port Group
Shanghai International Port (Group) Co., Ltd. (SIPG) is the exclusive operator of all the public terminals in the Port of Shanghai. It is a component of SSE 180 Index as well as CSI 300 Index and sub-index CSI 100 Index.
Its headquarters are ...
(SPIG) won the tender to operate the ''Bay Terminal'' in Haifa, while Switzerland-based Terminal Investment Limited (also known as the TiL Group, controlled by the privately held
MSC Group) won the tender to operate the ''Southern Terminal'' in Ashdod once the terminals’ construction is complete.
External links
Israel PortsOfficial website (English)
References
{{authority control
Government-owned companies of Israel
Rail transport in Israel
Transport companies of Israel
Port authorities
1961 establishments in Israel
Ports and harbours of Israel
Government agencies established in 1961
Organizations based in Tel Aviv