AMIAZ SAGIS CEO of Granite Harcamel Investments

United World
In May 2008, the State of Israel will celebrate its 60th anniversary. From an agricultural and non-industrialized country Israel has grown into a progressive and technological economy. What does this 60th anniversary mean for you, and what have been the major drivers behind this economic growth?

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

I was born sixty years ago therefore I am the same age as the state. My father fought against the Arabs in 1948, he was one of the commanders that opened the road to Jerusalem. The Arabs closed the road between Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem, and Jerusalem had no food or water. The soldiers had to open the road at a place called Bab El-Wad. My father was there 60 years ago and now we are sitting together after I served thirty-two years in the army. My last job was serving as head of technology& Logistics in the IDF and I was responsible for the development of all ground forces arms. In discussing the economic situation in Israel, you must look sixty years back. The development in Israel over the last sixty years has been dramatic. Here, we must fight against our enemies on the one hand and on the other we have had to invest tremendously in education and industry. Tel Aviv is like any other big city in the world and the standard of living in Israel is close to that of any western country.

The economy here is affected by the occurrences of the world market. From my point of view, Israel today must continue to invest its efforts in hi-tech and hi technology solutions like water treatment and desalination. Granite is a holding company, owned by Mr. David Azrieli and Mr. Yeshauhu Landau. Azrieli bought the company in Nov 2006 from the Borovitch family. The company is a holding company with a few divisions. The first division is energy, which holds Sonol and SuperGas. The second division is the industry division, which holds Tambour, Gesher- Gypsum and Tsach- Serafon as well as stakes in a company called Vulcan batteries. The third division is real estate; the fourth is the ecological division. Within this division we have G.E.S., an environmental solutions company. This is the focal point of our activities and we are going to leverage our activities in this company. The future industries will be water solutions, renewable energy and waste management. I think those are the three main focal points in which the new world will be based.

Mr. Zohar Yinon

We have a very aggressive investment plan trying to leverage on the situation in GES, which has expertise in process engineering and implementing water& sewage purification projects for industry and municipalities as well as desalination of brackish and sea water. They are running around the world bringing this vision to India, China, Greece, and Turkey. We are also looking very carefully into renewable energy. We have started with other investors in India to develop renewable energy projects there.I think that most of the countries in the western world share the same interest, especially the US because of impact that oil prices have on those economies. We understand the costs and troubles that an oil importing country has, and we think that in Israel where we have a very skillfull and intelligent human resources, it is a good place to make a significant R&D efforts in the thermo-solar and P.V. fields. We want Granite to be a major player in the world in the sectors of water, desalination and renewable energy. We have a good platform, engineers with extensive experience, various technologies, and financial resources.

Without any doubt the wave of immigration from the former USSR gave a boost to the Israeli economy because we received a large educated work force and capitalized on these human resources. The world is facing it's tomorrow started to look at the clean tech fields of business. Besides the big efforts in Nanotechnology, IT technology and communications in Israel, we at Granite have decided to look at Clean Tech projects and investments and we think that in those fields we have an advantage. We achieved a global appeal because Israel is a country with vast experience in the water & sewage sectors. Granite through it's fully owned subsidiary G.E.S. has done good work and I think that it is very important that Israel is becoming not just a defense exporter but also an environmental exporter, I am sure that it will improve the image of Israel and we are happy to help that happen..

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

You must take into account what we had here 60 years ago. We had nothing here. Immigrants came here, and there were no houses, they lived in tents, with no food or running water. We started from scratch and had to think how to and actually match up with the western world. The leaders of Israel decided to become a modern state very quickly. Other states could allow themselves to reach the summit by stairs, but we did it by elevator. If we want to be like the western world we had to do it very fast. Israel has developed so many technologies. On the one hand, we made weapons and military technologies because no one would sell us modern military equipment. We had to fight. You must think about this situation when discussing development. It is was not easy for the young state to build an army, an educational infrastructure, industrial facilities all this while taking into account that a large part of the country is desert. I think that things must be checked by results, and when you look at the results they are excellent and the last three generations did an excellent job.

I think now we are equal with many of the modern western states and now the question is how can we develop new technologies that will help us maintain our position and step forward. Take water for example, Israel is a world leader in water technology. Today people from all over the world are asking us to build projects in their countries, because of our experience. When you do not have natural resources you must supply an alternative path of growth.

United World
Environmental resource management is the future for the world. Oil is not as viable an energy source as it once was. What made the vision to move to clean tech and how do you plan to expand your business in this sector?

Mr. Zohar Yinon

We have a few investments in Clean Tech. One of the most interesting is a plant near Hadera that concentrates the Manure from 10,000 milking cows and we make it into compost while manufacturing electricity from the methane gas that this manure produces. The Emek Hefer area is a big agricultural zone, and this plant solves the ecological problems that come with agriculture. Dealing with manure from cows, chickens and other farm animals has been a very successful project, and we have been approached by people from New Zealand and Australia for similar projects.

Another interesting project is treating sludge. Wherever you have sewage treatment you end up with sludge and treating the sludge has always been a challenge. We have implemented programs that have converted sludge into fertilizer and have been approached from treatment plants around the world who want us to implement this solution. Another GES project is expanding Merger and Acquisition activity in Central America backing a company called Puritech that works in all of Central America. Through this Merger and Acquisition, we are introducing our ecological solutions into Latin America and we have identified an interesting potential in that part of the world.

We have submitted proposals to Mediterranean countries as well as India and China, which focus on purification processes, and taking responsibility in water management. We can downsize the percentage of leakages through interesting Israeli technologies and management skills that can ease problems of water management in countries like India . We are looking at renewable energy, especially for advanced solutions in solar energy. The main problem with renewable energy is that it costs more than coal power stations, but by increasing efficiency in solar energy the price difference can be overcome. We are looking at those technologies as well as companies around the world with whom we can join forces.

United World
You talked about your strong position in many emerging markets, what about the US, what are your plans on the US market?

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

We are the importers of Kenwood Heavy trucks from the US which are known for their efficiency. We have an automotive agency, the main one being Kenwood and we have a new investment in the field, in the green automotive industries. We have invested in EcoMotors who are introducing green motorcycles in Israel. This investment was made because we do not think only in profit terms but also because we think in terms of the right thing for the future, and we look for projects that will give us both benefits.

United World
You are developing a lot of technologies that would be very beneficial in the US. How are you going to expand your technologies to the US?

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

We have positive relations with all kinds of North American companies. Currently we can't specify specific investments in the US because the big potential for Granite is in the East, in Southeast Asia. The big potential is over there. We have to ask ourselves before we enter a market if we have an advantage.

United World
As the group has more than one business, I would like to hear about some of the groups synergies.

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

This is a holding company so you do not have to look hard to find synergies. Each division has different companies that fertilize themselves. Every division is managed separately and so the synergy inside of the divisions exists but not between the different divisions.

United World
You mentioned PuriTech in Central America as a promising venture, what else is on your horizon?

Mr. Zohar Yinon

We are now working in India, involved with renewable energy companies and computerizing gas stations and installing auto rings. We are exploring new business opportunities in the water sector in Eastern Europe, Turkey, India and China.

United World
You are a very international group, what are some of the most astonishing achievements you have made as a group?

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

I think one of our biggest achievements has been the desalinization plant and the manure plant in Emek Hefer. I think they are both internationally unique. I would like to see SuperGas go into natural gas. CleanTech is a philosophy throughout all of our divisions, Tambour makes paints based on water, Supergas is moving into natural gas instead of oil. Sonol is implementing an environmental strategy because we realize that it is a responsibility and where the future is going to be. Our focus on clean technology is one of the things that make us unique in terms of holding companies.

Mr. Zohar Yinon

There is an array of companies in Israel; banks and cellular companies. They are all very good companies that do what needs to be done here. We are looking to implement new Clean Tech technologies penetrating new markets. We are constantly searching for new technologies and ways in which to implement those technologies. Supermarket chains and cell phone companies are similar between countries; they do more or less the same things. We want to be unique and thus have to find unique areas in which to expand.

United World
What is a final key message you would like to send to our readers?

Mr. Amiaz Sagis

I think that in the last sixty years we have built the foundations of a skyscraper. We will build the next floors very quickly.

United World
Thank you for this interview.