Former Ambassador of Israel to India, Ron Malka, has been appointed Executive Chairman of the Haifa Port, owned by Adani Group and its Israeli partner Gadot Group. The consortium of Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) had acquired the port in July 2022, and completed the acquisition last year.
In a tweet, Malka said, “I’m honored and privileged to take office today as Executive Chairman of the Haifa Port Company, on behalf of @AdaniOnline. The experience and expertise of Adani and Gadot, combined with the dedication of the port workers, will take Haifa Port to new heights of prosperity.”
I’m honored and privileged to take office today as Executive Chairman of the Haifa Port Company, on behalf of @AdaniOnline. The experience and expertise of Adani and Gadot, combined with the dedication of the port workers, will take Haifa Port to new heights of prosperity 🇮🇳🤝🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/PIVC2w576U
Adani has a majority 70 per cent stake and Gadot holds 30 per cent stake.
Adani and Gadot won the bid for privatisation of the major trade hub on Israel’s Mediterranean coast for $1.18 billion. The tender process lasted for two years, before the consortium made it to the win.
Haifa Port said the new group will operate the port until 2054 and that the winning bid was “higher than expected.”
The official handover of the port was attended by Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gautam Adani in January. During the inauguration ceremony, Adani said that the Haifa Port acquisition was the outcome of a lot of hard work that they had put in the past 6 years.
“We have initiated several dozen technology relationships wherein we have offered the entire Adani Portfolio of companies to be a giant sandbox for us to learn together,” he had said.
Israel PM Netanyahu called the deal an ‘enormous milestone’ and added that it would significantly improve connectivity between India and Israel.