Oil shale in Israel

According to the Geological Survey of Israel, deposits that could have the biggest economic potential are located in the northern Negev, the largest being the Rotem-Yamin formation.

Oil shale in Israel is Upper Cretaceous marinite, which kerogen is most-likely formed from marine phytoplankton.

[1][2] According to government agencies in Israel, oil shale within the nation is not at present a viable energy resource, given currently available technologies.

[3] Oil shale deposits cover approximately 15% of Israel, mainly in the northern and central parts of the country.

[3] Other larger deposits are Sde Boker, Nahal Zin, Zenifim, Shefela-Hartuv, Oron, Nabi Musa, En Boqeq, and Yeroham.

Between 1982 and 1986, the PAMA company, a subsidiary of the Israel Electric Corporation, established and operated a 1 MW pilot plant, which used the fluidized bed combustion technology.

[6] Bustan, an Israeli non-governmental organization, reported that Israel considered purchasing oil shale processing technology from Russia's Technopromexport in 1999.

Bustan also reported that Pittsburgh-based MidAtlantic Energy Group considered a project to build a 150 MW oil shale-fired power plant at Mishor Rotem.

[8][9][10] The company envisioned bringing bitumen 80 kilometres (50 mi) by pipeline from the Ashdod refinery and returning product along the same corridor.

In May 2011, the Russian energy company Inter RAO announced that it had received a license to develop oil shale resources in the Negev desert.

[22][23][24] Main concerns of protesters have been increased greenhouse gas emissions, on-site storage of hazardous materials that could potentially infiltrate ground water, risk of other pollutants, drilling of multiple boreholes and altering the land for decades.