“We beat the Chinese language in competing for the tender in Jerusalem, and we proved that it may be finished with out politics,” Spanish public transport techniques producer CAF Israel president Mickey Raviv advised Globes Deputy Editor Dror Marmor on the Globes Infrastructure for the Future Convention.
Speaking about worldwide facets of infrastructure funding, he expressed cautious optimism about the opportunity of constructing main transportation tasks within the nation.
When requested about the opportunity of connecting Israel’s transport system to Saudi Arabia, Raviv mentioned, “We’re in an period of unbelievable transformations. Nobody anticipated that in President Trump’s earlier time period, Israel’s 25-year-old relations with the Persian Gulf would ‘come out into the open.’ I hope that the plan (for normalization) with Saudi Arabia will get underway now. What is required is 200 kilometers to attach the Saudi railway community to the Israeli one — through Jordan.”
Because the consultant of a global firm are you additionally this horizon?
“Completely. For us that is simple. CAF could be very lively in Saudi Arabia. A lot of the Saudi railway fleet is CAF’s. I do know the planning and deployment of trains there, it is extremely simple to implement and it should not be underestimated.”
At present, the Israeli railway market contains European rivals from France, Germany and Spain. After a tough 18 months, are your Spanish bosses nonetheless right here?
“Sure, after all. Since I based CAF Israel in 2020, there has by no means been a second when there was no overseas staff within the nation. We’re speaking in regards to the Covid interval, the times of the Gaza operation in 2021, and now throughout the warfare. There has by no means been a scenario the place there have been no overseas staff right here.
“After the warfare broke out, we evacuated the ladies and kids (10% of CAF Israel workers are foreigners). After the ladies and households returned to Spain to enroll their youngsters in colleges, the overseas staff returned right here.”
“For the reason that warfare broke out, CAF’s senior managers have visited right here many instances. The Israeli market is vital – it’s a small nation however an enormous marketplace for us.”
How did you put together for conditions just like the warfare? Had been you impacted by political pressures?
“We’ve lengthy expertise working on the route between Europe and Israel. One of many first issues we did was put together a contingency plan that gave the headquarters and the overseas staff certainty in case one thing occurred in Israel.
Was there a dialogue about safety? Was it political? Was competitors affected?
“I do not assume competitors was affected. A special group (of corporations) is chosen for every venture. Israel is recognized as a goal, maybe geographically small, however due to its backlog of tasks it is extremely engaging.”
How afraid are you of Chinese language competitors?
“We beat the Chinese language within the tender for the venture in Jerusalem. In different city tasks, PPP tasks (authorities concession to function by a concessionaire), we additionally proved in Jerusalem that it’s potential to defeat the Chinese language participant no matter politics, even on the matter of pricing.”
What expectations are there for upcoming tasks?
“Whether or not it is the Tel Aviv Metro venture or the one in Jerusalem, whether or not it is Israel Railways commuter trains. In each railway venture in Israel, CAF will probably be there. In recent times, there have been mergers between producers within the railway world (reminiscent of between Alstrom and Bombardier). We see consolidation that hurts competitors. It is vital for us to acknowledge the significance of this market and to be right here. We’ll be right here for each tender that will probably be revealed.”
Is there a scarcity of engineers? Those that graduate in engineering desire to work for a chip producer like Nvidia. “We see this. Engineers primarily desire the low-voltage electrical energy sector as we speak, which means they go to work within the chip trade. We’re searching for individuals who got here from different industries, prepare them and introduce them to our trade.
Once I first arrived on the worldwide railway exhibition (InnoTrans), which meets each two years in Berlin, there have been 5 Israelis. On the final convention, there have been already 500 Israelis. This reveals how the tasks that the market right here presents are attracting extra industries to enter the railways.”
Raviv shares a narrative about how his actions helped an area producer from the north. “On one in all my journeys to the north, I noticed a car with handrails manufactured by an organization known as Tal and Hadas. We searched and located an organization positioned in an industrial space within the north of the nation.
We drove as much as them and advised them that we wished them to provide all of the handrails for the trains within the nation. They internalized the requirements, after which Tal and Hadas from the north produced a number of inside parts for the trains of Bombardier after which for CAF. If there’s a chance of taking up tasks for the success of small and medium-sized companies within the nation, we made a distinction.”
Are there sufficient corporations like Tal and Hadas and CAF right here for the Metro venture and the railway to Eilat?
“It is possible. However let’s put issues so as. Within the Israel Railways intercity community, it is vital that there be a possibility for worldwide suppliers to enter there. Israel Railways depends on two worldwide suppliers, there may be room for extra gamers. It is vital that in Israel Railways tenders, on issues of high quality and worth, extra critical emphasis is positioned on high quality. We do not wish to get caught right here with growing older trains that do not do the job even in thirty years.”
“It is vital that there be a authorities firm that may construct metropolitan trains. Data has gathered in Israel, however not in a single place. In NTA, data has gathered about executing a venture, whereas in Jerusalem, data has gathered about tenders. What’s wanted is to unify the enterprise. Jerusalem’s insights into tenders must be built-in with NTA’s insights into execution.”
Are there financing capabilities for future tasks?
“There’s sufficient cash. We closed financing on time (in our tasks). At present, there is no such thing as a downside financing tasks in Israel.”
Full disclosure: The convention was sponsored by Ackerstein, CAF, Israel Railways, Netivei Israel, and Egged and with the participation of Ashdod Port and Mekorot.
