Natural gas royalties jump 23%, top NIS 1 billion in first half of year

Israel collected more than NIS 1 billion ($263 million) in natural gas royalties in the first half of the year, representing an increase of 23 percent over the same period in 2022, the Energy and Infrastructure Ministry said on Tuesday.

The increase in revenue from royalties was attributed to the rise in the amount of production of natural gas for exports, the production of hydrocarbon liquids, as well as the weakness of the shekel versus the dollar, according to a report by the Energy Ministry’s Division of Royalties, Accounting and Economics.

More than half of the revenue from natural gas royalties, some NIS 590 million ($155 million), was generated from exports mainly to Egypt and Jordan, according to the report. For 2023, Israel is expected to collect a total of NIS 2 billion ($526 million) from natural gas and other natural resources royalties, the ministry estimated. READ MORE