A senior Israeli electricity official's recent comments about the country's vulnerability to power outages have sparked a significant increase in demand for home generators and power stations. The remarks, made by Shaul Goldstein, CEO of NOGA (Israel's Independent System Operator), highlighted concerns about the nation's preparedness for potential disruptions.
"We are in a bad situation and not prepared for a real war," Goldstein stated, according to the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). His words seem to have resonated deeply with the Israeli public, as evidenced by a sharp rise in related online searches and retail sales.
As reported by Israel Hayom, Google Trends data reveals a 140% increase in searches for "recommended home generator" over the past week. More strikingly, in the 24 hours following Goldstein's statement, searches for "home generator" spiked by 250%.
This digital trend has translated into tangible sales. Machsanei Hashmal, a major electrical appliance retailer in Israel, reported a 15% increase in generator and power station sales compared to their daily average over the last month. Liron Katz, the company's VP of Business Development, noted a fivefold increase in generator searches on their e-commerce platform and a 24% rise in in-store sales.
The surge in demand is particularly pronounced in northern Israel. Haifa leads with 36% of recent purchases, followed by other northern regions at 23%, and the Krayot area at 10%. The remaining 4% is distributed across other parts of the country.
This buying trend has rapidly depleted inventories. Machsanei Hashmal reports that 80% of their stock - approximately 1,000 generators and 2,500 power stations - has already been sold. They anticipate the remainder will be gone within days, with new stock not expected to arrive from Europe until September.
The current situation echoes a similar surge in March, which followed a speech by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. At that time, Machsanei Hashmal sold about 850 units over three days. This was in spite of the Environment Ministry’s director general, Guy Samet's statement: “If you want energy security, don’t buy generators ... You won’t use it for years. You’ll need fuel [in the event of a war] and you won’t [necessarily] find it. Go for a solar system that will provide energy to your home," as reported by the Times of Israel.
The current rate of sales is outpacing even the previous spike, with other companies also feeling the effects. Hamilton, which imports ANKER brand products to Israel, reports a "second wave" of high demand for home power stations since the outbreak of the recent conflict. Efi Aharoni, CEO of the Hamilton Group, attributes this to "a real and greater fear of war and long power outages."
As Israelis rush to secure backup power sources, both the government and energy sector now face questions about how to bolster the nation's electrical grid against potential threats.