More than 250 business leaders, Israeli and American politicians, diplomats and opinion leaders gathered in New York’s Gotham Hall Sunday night for a private gala cocktail reception prior to the Jerusalem Post Conference that will be held on Monday. The event was held in the presence of senior Israeli and American officials, including former Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Israeli ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan, former Minister Ayelet Shaked, businessman and philanthropist Sylvan Adams, Ministers Nir Barkat and Ofir Akunis, Moshe Lion, the Mayor of Jerusalem, and others.
“Israel can be %100 based on renewable energy and clean energy in 10 years, if only the government and lawmakers would support it,” said Ofer Yannay, Chairman and founder, Nofar Energy, in an interview with former editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post, Yaakov Katz during the gala event of the Post’s annual New York conference. During the event, he also launched his new book, New Under the Sun, about the renewable energy revolution. He also said during his interview that his company has laid out a massive plan that is bringing in European countries as well.
Renewable energy will become the world's primary source of energy
Yannay predicts that renewable energy will become the world’s primary source of energy. “This is a battle that will be over in less than a decade,” he says. “The transformation of the world’s energy system to renewable energy is a biblical event. It is amazing, and I am very happy to be a part of it in Israel. We are moving forward in many territories around the world with this unique, innovative idea.”
Nofar Energy includes an extensive portfolio of over 2,000 projects and subsidiaries across seven countries in Europe and the US, and major renewable energy and energy storage projects, generating over 1,000MW of renewable energy.
The event, which was hosted by Jerusalem Post Editor-in-Chief Avi Mayer and Post CEO Inbar Ashkenazi, featured an interview with Ofer Yannay, who discussed the importance of solar energy and its emergence as one of the world’s primary energy sources.
“The transformation of the world’s energy system to renewable energy is a biblical event. It is amazing, and I am very happy to be a part of it in Israel. We are moving forward in many territories around the world with this unique, innovative idea.”
Ofer Yannay
On Monday, Yannay addressed attendees at the Jerusalem Post Conference and detailed his proposals for “using energy not as a weapon of war, but as a means to create prosperity and peace.”
“To be a Jew, for me is to be on a journey, a journey that is personal. It’s also a generational journey,” Yannay said, giving examples of leaders such as Abraham, Moses, and Theodor Herzl, who established modern Zionism.
Yannay is the chairman and Founder of Nofar Energy, one of the largest commercial and industrial solar companies in the world and a global leader in renewable energy investments. He attended Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran said at the event that “I am here to speak not about the past 75 years, but rather about the next 75 years of our region. The Crown Prince said that “once this evil regime is defeated, a new future will arise. It will provide multiple opportunities to improve the lives of so many citizens of our region, working in harmony.”
Reza Pahlavi II is the oldest son of the last Shah of Iran. He was the crown prince before the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Today, he resides in Virginia and is a prominent critic of Iran’s government.