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ICL (TASE: ICL: NYSE: ICL) remains to be ready to listen to whether or not its concession to mine phosphates on the Rotem Amfert plant within the jap Negev shall be renewed when it expires on the finish of the yr.
Minister of Nationwide Infrastructures, Vitality and Water Sources Karin Elharrar has introduced that she will not lengthen the concession for the manufacturing facility which employs 1,200 individuals, till an examination into the previous royalty funds by ICL has been accomplished by the Ministry of Finance’s Accountant Basic’s workplace. KAN Channel 11 Information has reported that Elharrar has contacted Minister of Finance Avigdor Liberman with a request to expedite issues.
At this stage, though it’s nonetheless solely an examination, there could possibly be far reaching penalties if Elharrar in the end decides to not lengthen the phosphate concession.
Phosphate mining has been performed on the website for many years below the concession that expires on the finish of 2021. As there may be solely a comparatively small quantity of phosphates remaining, Elharrar’s predecessor Yuval Steinitz determined three years in the past to help extending the concession with out issuing a young, on the idea that there was little chance of a brand new bidder rising.
Nevertheless, the renewal of ICL’s concession, which has been authorized by the Israel Antitrust Authority, additionally wants approval by the Knesset Finance Committee. However the course of was halted by the change of presidency and the place on the matter the brand new heads of the Ministry of Nationwide Infrastructures, Vitality and Water Sources is no longer clear.
The choice to increase the concession with no tender has been harshly criticized by Foyer 99, a political group that promotes the general public’s curiosity on socio-economic points. Foyer 99 claims that ICL is being given a ‘reward’ with out the corporate committing to scrub the land after operations on the positioning are ended. Foyer 99 additionally insists that the royalties paid by ICL for the assets are too low, and that Steinitz ought to have tried to boost them.
ICL is presently paying 5% royalties for the phosphates as set by the Sheshinski Fee – an identical fee to that being paid for the pure fuel within the Leviathan and Tamar offshore fields.
Within the second quarter, ICL reported $77 million income from phosphates, though solely a small a part of that was in Israel. In all of 2020 the federal government acquired royalties of NIS 8.6 million for the Rotem Amfert phosphates, after receiving NIS 10.3 million in 2019.
Underneath these circumstances it stays unclear why the Ministry of Finance is taking so lengthy to look at issues and why Elharrar is in no rush to undertake Steinitz’s suggestion.
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The Ministry of Finance stated, “The examination with regards to the royalties pertains to previous funds by Rotem Amfert to the state. The goal of the examination is to verify the diligence of the royalty funds based on the concession settlement with the corporate and mechanisms set in legislation. The examination is because of be accomplished within the coming months and relies on receiving supplies from the corporate.”
Revealed by Globes, Israel enterprise information – en.globes.co.il – on September 2, 2021
Copyright of Globes Writer Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2021
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