The Israeli Cybersecurity-Talent-Sector

Six anchor operators in Israeli climate, water, and resource technology ranked by infrastructure scale and category position. Two public, four private or foreign-owned. The companies that built — and in some cases are reportedly considering selling — the infrastructure underneath the Israeli answer to scarcity.

Methodology: rankings prioritize infrastructure ownership, operational scale, and category influence — not market capitalization or venture funding. Updated as ownership changes and operational metrics shift.

Rank 1 — Netafim

Category: Precision irrigation (drip)
Ownership: Orbia (Mexico) 80%, Kibbutz Hatzerim 20%; sale process reported
Scale: Calcalist reports FY2024 revenue $1.04 billion; FY2025 EBITDA approximately $135 million. 17 plants across 14 countries. Farms in 110+ countries.
The story: As of February 2026, Calcalist and Globes reported Netafim is in sale talks with a consortium led by Chinese businessman Haoyu Wang at a proposed valuation near $1.4 billion. The deal has not closed.

Rank 2 — Ormat Technologies (NYSE: ORA / TASE: ORA)

Category: Geothermal, energy storage, recovered energy
Ownership: Dual-listed public, founded Israel 1965
Scale: Company reported FY2025 revenue of $989.5 million (+12.5% YoY) and net income of $123.9 million. 1.7 GW total generating portfolio.
The story: Q1 2026 — $1 billion convertible notes offering closed at attractive terms; 150 MW PPA supporting Google data-center operations through NV Energy (per company announcement Feb 2026). AI-electricity demand is the structural tailwind.

Rank 3 — IDE Technologies

Category: Desalination, water treatment
Ownership: Alpha Partners (private), since 2019 at $406M valuation per Calcalist
Scale: Built or operates Israel’s major desalination plants; deployments across 40+ countries.
The story: AnewZ and Israeli outlets reported in January 2026 that Azerbaijan Investment Holding has been conducting due diligence on a possible 30% stake at $250–270 million. The transaction is reported, not confirmed.

Rank 4 — SolarEdge (NASDAQ: SEDG)

Category: Smart energy / solar inverters / battery storage
Ownership: Public, Nasdaq-listed since 2015
Scale: Per company filings, Q1 2026 revenue $310.5 million (+46% YoY); management cited the sixth consecutive quarter of margin expansion.
The story: Mid-recovery under CEO Shuki Nir, with company targeting breakeven operating profitability at the midpoint of Q2 2026 guidance. Rolling out the Nexis platform and an AI data-center power roadmap.

Rank 5 — Mekorot

Category: National water utility, treatment, infrastructure export
Ownership: State of Israel
Scale: Operates the national water grid; exports operational consulting and engineering to 25+ countries.
The story: Covered separately at Mekorot: The Utility That Became a National Export.

Rank 6 — Watergen

Category: Atmospheric water generation (AWG)
Ownership: Private, controlled by Michael Mirilashvili
Scale: Deployments in 85+ countries; OEM partnerships with Ford and Mullen Automotive.
The story: Specialized category leader; humanitarian deployments alongside vehicle-OEM commercial track.

The structural read

The roster is two anchors, three private operators, one utility. Public-equity capacity is roughly $5–7 billion combined (SolarEdge + Ormat at recent levels). Private-asset value across Netafim, IDE and Watergen is in the low single-digit billions, depending on which reported transactions close. The total category value sits below the country’s fintech or cyber cohorts. The infrastructure footprint — water and power assets actually owned and operated worldwide — is meaningfully larger than that headline suggests.