Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Maria Cantwell are demanding to know why Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz hasn’t started an American-Israeli energy cooperation center, something they asked him to begin a year ago.
In a letter sent Friday, the Alaska Republican and Washington Democrat, the top two members of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, followed up on a May 12, 2015, letter asking Moniz to establish the United States-Israel Energy Center.
The senators want the center to be a cutting-edge, academic and industry research focused hub of cooperation between the U.S. and Israel. Despite a law approving the center, nothing has been done so far to make progress on it, the letter states.
“Unfortunately, almost 11 months has passed without action demonstrating the Department’s intent to establish the center,” they wrote.
Moniz recently returned from a trip to Israel where the U.S. and Israel agreed to an amend an agreement between the Department of Energy and Israel’s Ministry of National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Resources.
The new agreement includes more innovations in clean energy, water efficiency and cybersecurity at critical energy and water infrastructure, according to the letter. More postdoctoral exchanges between the two countries were also announced.
However, Murkowski and Cantwell want to see more initiative taken to start the energy center.
The letter said the center would allow the two countries to cooperate on renewable energy, energy efficiency, water, natural gas reservoir development and other areas.
“The center would support technological and scientific innovation, increased energy security and mutual benefit for both countries,” the letter states. “We are pleased that you accomplished so much on your recent trip but respectfully request that you commence work on the center for the benefit of the United States and Israel.”
