"For me, the transition to Delek Energy Renewables is a natural return home to the kibbutzim and moshavim"

Late 2025. Avital Ofek, CEO of Doral Israel and the man who led it to market leadership status, is taking an unusual and bold step in the business sector, leaving everything and returning to the entrepreneur position to start almost from scratch. To an outside observer, it seems illogical, but when diving into the life story of Ofek, who was chosen last year as the Person of the Year in the green economy, one discovers that this decision is part of a pattern of choosing the less traveled path, one that combines kibbutz roots with uncompromising business vision.

"For me, the transition from Doral, which reached a workforce of 350 employees and became an international company, to a private, young, and dynamic energy company, is a natural return home to the kibbutzim and moshavim, a place where energy, entrepreneurship, and creativity meet," he says.

Ofek's life path began in Kibbutz HaZorea, where he grew up until age 11, after which his family moved to Yokneam HaMoshava. The high school years in the kibbutz education system in Ein HaShofet were not easy for him, but what seemed like a difficulty then, later became an engine of creativity and mental flexibility. After service in the IDF, Ofek turned to law studies at Netanya College, where he finished the degree with high honors.

The first significant junction in his career came with the completion of his internship at the law firm "Yehuda Raveh" in Tel Aviv. "While my friends were looking for their future in the large office towers of Tel Aviv, I chose to take a different and quite unusual step and return north with my young family," he recalls. "I decided to return to live in a kibbutz and work at a law firm named Shlomo Cohen & Co., which specializes in kibbutzim and moshavim."

Within a short time, attorney Ofek began to identify the potential inherent in the field of renewable energy. "I specialized in representing kibbutzim and moshavim both in the commercial and legal aspects, learning in the process the regulatory angles of the developing field." Moving to the entrepreneurial side, over the years, Ofek made a name for himself as an expert. "In those days, I learned a lot from the conduct of Yaki Neumann and Ofer Yanai, who are for me the pioneers of the renewable energy field in Israel," says Ofek. In the process, he also understood that the legal framework was too narrow for his ambitions.

In 2020, he took the decisive step and joined the Doral group as the company's 18th employee, just before its public offering. "I was appointed to the position of VP of Business Development and later promoted to the position of CEO of operations in Israel. I managed all operations in Israel with huge investment volumes of billions of shekels. At only 33 years old, I found myself at the head of a pyramid managing about 100 employees, while establishing diverse business units in the fields of agro-solar, municipal, and urban energy."

Despite the significant success at Doral, Ofek felt that the large companies in the field had become "giants" and lost the personal connection with the field along the way. Thus, a significant gap was created in the market: the large companies are focused on global activity, while the small ones struggle to rise because of the high interest rate and complex regulation. Here, the Delek group entered the picture.

"The Delek group is an old, stable energy company with a strong financial backing and over 50,000 existing customers," he explains. "I wanted to build a company that is not only entrepreneurial, but one that brings a different DNA where every project is strategic and the customer is in first place in the priorities and considerations throughout the project period." Delek Energy Renewables was established about a year ago, and with Ofek's joining, it immediately became one of the most intriguing renewable energy companies in the market.

One of the central aspects that Ofek is leading in the new company is the agro-voltaic field. For this purpose, he joined forces with Uria Reshef, an expert in the field and a farmer, to establish what he defines as the first agro-voltaic company in Israel. "We look at this event as an agricultural event that combines R&D and technologies, and not just as an energy deal under which there are agricultural crops," he emphasizes.

Just one year after its establishment, Delek Energy Renewables is preparing for the execution of two significant agro-voltaic projects in the north of the country. Also, the company has signed over ten agro-voltaic projects with kibbutzim and moshavim throughout the country. "Our first two projects are expected to break ground in 2027. These are unprecedented achievements," he says with satisfaction.

Ofek, a graduate of the "Maoz" leadership program, sees the connection between the business sector and local government and the community as a supreme value. He works to promote energy corporations in local and regional authorities. The connection between him and the value of leadership received additional validity following the events of October 7. While he was managing Doral Israel under crisis, his wife Mor, a senior officer in the Air Force, was protecting the country. "We were evacuated 13 times from our home in Ramat David," he recalls the turbulent period, in which he stayed with his three daughters in hotels, managing projects in the billions while worrying about his family and employees who were in the reserves. "This experience only strengthened my belief in the importance of human and attentive management."

In conclusion, Ofek notes that he does not intend to take his foot off the gas: "We intend to continue and act to promote the future of renewable energy in Israel, while making Delek Energy Renewables one of the leading companies in the Israeli economy. For Ofek, the combination of values and business is not a slogan but a way of life."