More than a year has passed since the Dayan Committee’s interim conclusions on gas policy were published in April 2025. This was amid major disagreements between the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructures and the Ministry of Finance over the amount of exports allowed. Since then, a huge deal has been signed by the Leviathan partners for gas exports to Egypt worth $35 billion; and recently, a major Egyptian deal is also being formed with the Tamar partners, worth up to $20 billion – both of which meet the tough gas export limit proposed by the Ministry of Finance in the committee.
But questions such as the amount of gas that will be allocated to the domestic economy or the obligation to supply it with cheap gas have no answers, except for the policy set in 2018. The government still cannot decide on future gas policy, and gas customers are also left with question marks.
Israel has become a significant gas exporter in recent years, with almost half of its ever-increasing gas production directed towards exports. This amount is expected to increase significantly in the future, with the completion of additional export pipelines and huge deals being formed between Israel’s main gas reserves and Egypt, which desperately needs Israeli gas and is willing to pay relatively high sums for it.
Despite the major profit potential, a significant portion of which will go to the state coffers and the sovereign wealth fund, the government agrees that it is necessary to keep back enough gas for the domestic economy for the coming years. How much, and how? This sparked a particularly large controversy within the Dayan Committee, headed by Ministry of Energy director general Yossi Dayan. Most members of the committee, including Ministry of Energy representatives, supported keeping back 440 BCM for the domestic economy as set out in the 2018 policy. However, they were opposed by the Ministry of Finance, which wants to expand this amount and keep back 515 BCM for the domestic economy, significantly restricting gas exports.
The Ministry of Finance’s proposal is to keep back sufficient gas for the domestic economy for more than 20 years, although this could lead to a reduction in the motivation for gas exploration, which is already being delayed. The Ministry of Finance’s position was not accepted by the committee and is expected to appear in the final report as only a minority opinion. The ultimate decision on the issue is a government decision that could favor the Ministry of Finance’s position. However, while there is no final report, the government cannot make a decision.
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“A false picture of the situation”
Lobby 99, a non-profit civil society organization, which promotes the socio-economic interests of the public, has been dealing with the gas issue for a long time and is demanding the publication of the report. In an open letter, Lobby 99 complains that fundamental strategic decisions and processes are being implemented, disconnected from the reality that emerged in the Dayan Committee’s deliberations, based on outdated government decisions.
Lobby 99 says, “Government policy in related areas is also based on a false picture of the situation,” such as granting the export permit for the Leviathan deal, setting renewable energy targets (which should be higher the less gas there is for the local economy), building gas-fired power plants, and building data centers. For government policy on the issue to be coherent, they demand “action to publish the committee’s conclusions.”
For example, two of the major partners in the Tamar reservoir, Isramco and Mubadala (an Abu Dhabi investment fund) signed a memorandum of understanding with Egypt on a gas export deal worth billions of dollars starting in 2031. If all Tamar partnerships are fully implemented, this will be a $20 billion deal. As long as the Dayan Committee conclusions have not been submitted and accepted by a government decision, the decision on whether to allow them an export permit (and under what conditions) is being made according to the Ministry of Energy’s policy from 2018.
In the parallel Leviathan deal, Minister of Energy Eli Cohen decided to block the final export permit at the last minute and demanded a commitment to supply cheap gas to the domestic economy. Will this be the rule from now on, or just a passing episode? Will the system be an ad hoc deal for each export deal, or will there be rules? To that end, a fundamental policy decision needs to be made.
The policy is fundamentally changing
In addition to the delay in submitting the report, gas exploration is also in question. Export policy is an important consideration that dramatically affects the profit from Israeli gas, and hence the motivation to participate in risky gas exploration in the Mediterranean waters. The ability to export to a large customer in Egypt could make the difference in the decision as offshore exploration and business companies will always prefer regulatory certainty. Gas industry officials wonder “What’s the point of tenders when you don’t know what the rules are,” adding that there is no escape from publishing the Dayan Committee report soon.
Meanwhile the government is not sitting idly by. One of the key recommendations in the interim report is to establish infrastructure for importing and storing gas, which does not exist in Israel to any significant extent. The government has begun planning this infrastructure, about which there is no disagreement in the committee.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 20, 2026.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2026.
