Doral targets $2 billion U.S. IPO as former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen stands to gain $35 million
The renewable-energy developer aims to raise up to $500 million as its U.S. arm expands its multigigawatt project pipeline.
Doral is moving forward with the IPO of its U.S. operations on a local U.S. exchange, and Calcalist has learned that, as of now, the offering is expected to take place in a little over six months, in May-June 2026. Doral aims to list the business, consolidated under Doral LLC, at a valuation of at least $2 billion, raising $400-500 million. As Calcalist previously reported, Doral, led by CEO Yoni Hantis, has already hired an investment bank to advance the process, and it has now emerged that J.P. Morgan may lead the IPO.
If the offering proceeds at the targeted valuation, one of the main beneficiaries will be former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen, who has served as a director at Doral LLC since September 2021. Under his compensation package, approved in August 2021, Cohen received 37,400 options in the subsidiary at an exercise price of $802 per share, representing a total investment of $3 million and reflecting a company valuation of roughly $1 billion at the time. The options vested in August 2023 and may be exercised until August 2028. At the time of the grant, the options could have given Cohen a stake of up to 3% in Doral LLC, but subsequent capital raises have diluted this. According to Doral’s 2024 annual report, published at the end of March, the options now represent 1.8% of the company on a fully diluted basis.
The IPO will be led by J.P. Morgan and Jefferies. If completed at a $2 billion valuation, Cohen will be able to purchase shares worth $36 million for $3 million, or receive the $33 million net gain in cash. He is also entitled to a $2 million bonus upon a successful offering.
In other words, an IPO at the targeted valuation would yield Cohen approximately $35 million. In addition, he receives a salary of $25,000 per month, equivalent to NIS 906,000 per year, meaning he has earned nearly NIS 3 million to date for his tenure as director.
Doral LLC holds a portfolio totaling 16 GW of generation capacity and 4 GW of storage. Of this, 480 MW is already connected to the U.S. grid, 1.2 GW is under or near construction, and 2 GW is in advanced development. A further 4.5 GW is in earlier development stages. In energy storage, 340 MW is in advanced development, with another 2.15 GW in earlier development.
Two weeks ago, alongside its third-quarter results, Doral announced a deal increasing its stake in Doral LLC by 10%, bringing its holding to 36%, with an option to purchase an additional 4.9%. The transaction valued Doral LLC at $1.8-2 billion, triggering a 17.4% jump in Doral’s share price that day. The stock has now risen 132% this year, bringing Doral to a record valuation of NIS 5.2 billion.
On Sunday, Doral reported that it had signed agreements to purchase $650 million worth of solar panels for two Doral LLC projects: Vista Sands in Wisconsin, with an expected capacity of 1.45 GW, and Cold Creek in Texas, with 550 MW of capacity and 340 MWh of storage. The panels will be delivered in 2026-2027, with payments made according to supply milestones. Both projects are in advanced development and are expected to reach construction readiness, financial closing, or guaranteed tariff agreements within a year. Final construction approvals are still pending. As of late September, Doral estimated that the projects would begin commercial operation in 2028, generating a combined $900 million in annual revenue.
For the Texas project, Doral signed a $450 million construction agreement in October with a U.S. contractor, as well as an agreement to sell 75% of its solar-generated electricity (excluding storage output) to an American communications company for $400 million over 12 years.
Doral did not disclose the identity of the panel supplier, only stating that it is a global “Tier 1” manufacturer, similar to the undisclosed supplier contracted in August 2023 to provide panels for its Indiana project at a cost of NIS 1.25 billion. The agreement includes a price-adjustment mechanism if U.S. tariffs increase, indicating that the supplier is foreign rather than American.
Last week, Doral completed a NIS 590 million capital raise, with participation from institutional investors and hedge funds. More Investment House became a significant shareholder after purchasing roughly NIS 250 million in stock.
Doral stated: “As reported, Doral LLC is examining various options to diversify and strengthen its capital sources as part of its continued growth strategy and expansion of operations. The evaluation is being conducted in an orderly and balanced manner in line with company procedures and market conditions. As relevant steps are taken, Doral will provide updates accordingly.”
