Mekorot, Israel’s water monopoly, has demanded that the government increase water prices by 40% to compensate it for connecting desalination plants to its pipe network. Yet in the same statement, Mekorot said that the cost (which has certainly been inflated) would be just $500 mil. A 40% price hike would allow Mekorot to cover these costs in a year.
The real solution to Israel’s water crisis lies in a different sphere. Instead of feeding the people unhealthy and ultra-expensive desalinated water, the government must end the near-free water supply to farms and crack down on the massive theft of water by Arabs who almost never pay for their consumption.