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Israel
Israel approved a national AI programme in June 2026, then froze new data centre grid connections for 140 days after requests reached 27,000MW.
On 20 July 2026 the Electricity Authority told the system operator Noga to stop processing connection applications for data centres of 8MW or more for 140 days, until early December, after requests reached about 27,000MW, roughly three times average national consumption of about 9,000MW (peak about 17,000MW in August 2025). The freeze followed a government decision about a month earlier approving a national AI plan to attract compute investment. The Authority, the Energy Ministry and Noga are reviewing how to allocate scarce power. For someone seeking compute, new large Israeli capacity cannot get new grid commitments before December 2026 at the earliest. All Israeli facts here are Reported; official pages could not be fetched.
AI policy and activity
Calcalist reports a national AI plan approved in June 2026 to attract advanced computing investment. Globes reports the National Economic Council chair is promoting legislation to define server farms as national infrastructure. A trade site reports a government resolution and a National AI Directorate; we could not confirm these from a better source.
Power and grid
Reported. Calcalist: pending connection requests total about 27,000MW (about 19,000MW arrived in two months on top of an 8,000MW backlog), against average consumption of about 9,000MW and a peak of about 17,000MW in August 2025. An industry official is quoted saying there is no scenario to catch up with the demand.
Data centres and compute
| Site | Where | Status | Notes and source |
|---|---|---|---|
| National AI supercomputer (first phase, about 1,000 Nvidia B200 GPUs) Israel Innovation Authority programme | Israel (site not stated) | Operating | Reported, weak. Startup Fortune (23 July 2026) says discounted access is open, with 70 percent for companies and 30 percent for academic research. The Innovation Authority page (innovationisrael.org.il) returned a block page, and TechRepublic and DCD also could not be fetched, so the figures are unconfirmed. (source) |
Rules and programmes
| Instrument | Kind | Status | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity Authority freeze on data centre grid connection applications | Grid | In force from 20 July 2026 | Reported. Calcalist (21 July 2026) and Globes (20 July 2026, https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-1001549860): 140 days, applications of 8MW or more, until early December 2026. Globes says the system has committed about 1,500MW of connections so far. The Authority's own notice was not read. |
| National AI plan approved by the government | Policy | In force | Reported. Calcalist says the government approved it about a month before 21 July 2026; the decision text and exact date were not read. |
| Proposed legislation to define server farms as national infrastructure | Law | Proposed | Reported. Globes (20 July 2026) says the National Economic Council chair is promoting it; Globes doubts the grid can cope. |
Checked on 2 October 2026 and due for review by 1 January 2027. Many sources are trade press or law-firm summaries rather than official texts, and statuses such as reported or unconfirmed are shown as the source gives them. This is a summary, not legal advice. If something is wrong or out of date, tell us.