Author: Leila Tariverdieva
On the sidelines of the COP29 climate conference, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan will sign an intergovernmental Agreement on a strategic partnership in the field of development and transfer of green energy. The Minister of Energy of Azerbaijan, Parviz Shahbazzov, announced this recently. The signing will take place within the framework of the Investment Forum on the Energy Transition for Central Asia.
The document reflects the intentions of the parties to organize supplies of clean energy to Europe and other regions, cooperate in the use of new technologies and develop services in the field of energy supply and energy efficiency. The project envisages connecting the power systems of three countries by laying a high-voltage cable along the bottom of the Caspian Sea and on land in order to implement the most optimal, from a technical and economic point of view, trade in green energy produced in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. It is reported that the agreement will be concluded for an indefinite period.
Green transition of Azerbaijan – and without prejudice to national interests – CURRENT from Leila Tariverdieva
Previously, an agreement was reached to create a joint venture in Baku to export green energy from Central Asia to Europe. The terms of reference for conducting a preliminary feasibility study of the project in collaboration with the Italian consulting company CESI were approved.
At the beginning of May, the ministers of economy and energy of Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan signed a Memorandum of Cooperation in Tashkent on the integration of the energy systems of the three countries. The parties identified joint goals for the production of green energy and its export to Europe. It is expected that it will make it possible to export green energy, that is, energy produced from renewable sources, to Europe from these countries.
As Emin Mammadzade, Ph.D. in economics, leading researcher at the Institute of Economics under the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan, noted earlier in an interview with Day.Az, Azerbaijan, like the countries of Central Asia, has significant potential for solar and wind energy. Relatively low population density, large territory and many sunny days a year altogether make our countries a unique platform for the development of green energy. Joint participation in projects related to alternative energy sources will allow each country to ensure the effective use of its potential in this area of the economy.
“On December 17, 2022, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary signed a strategic partnership agreement, which provides for the construction of an energy bridge from the Caucasus region to Europe. As part of the agreement reached, the construction of an undersea electric cable Black Sea Energy with a capacity of 1000 MW and a length of 1195 kilometers is expected. is intended to supply green electricity produced in Azerbaijan through Georgia and the Black Sea to Romania for subsequent transportation to Hungary and the rest of Europe. And connecting the energy capabilities of Central Asian countries to the Black Sea Energy project will significantly increase both Azerbaijan’s budget revenues from transit and and will increase export revenues of the budgets of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, Mamedzade believes,” the economist said.
Azerbaijan will develop energy sources in a balanced manner – Economist Emin Mammadzade for Day.Az
Currently, the installed capacity of RES facilities in Kazakhstan is 2,868.6 MW; at the end of 2023, Uzbekistan commissioned six RES facilities with a capacity of 2,400 MW. In Azerbaijan’s total electricity production, the capacity generated from renewable energy sources is 1,688 MW.
Azerbaijan is increasing its production of green energy and is expected to surpass its partners in production volumes in the coming years. By 2027, through foreign and local investments, it is planned to implement projects for the construction of 8 industrial-scale solar and wind power plants with a total capacity of about 2 GW. About $2.8 billion will be invested in these projects. In the next three years, Azerbaijan plans to increase electricity production to 5.3 billion kWh.
As part of COP29, the project of the solar power plant “Schafag” will be launched and the results of the tender for the construction of the solar station “Gobustan” with a capacity of 100 MW will be summed up. It should be noted that Shafag will be built in the Jebrail region and will be the first project in the field of renewable energy sources in the liberated territories. Investments in the project for the construction of this solar power plant with a capacity of 240 MW will amount to $200 million. The station will be built by BP’s subsidiary Lightsource. The solar power plant will supply energy to the Sangachal terminal, and this will reduce harmful emissions into the atmosphere equivalent to 260-330 thousand tons of carbon dioxide per year. The decision to build a solar power plant was made two years ago as part of the strategy to transform the liberated territories into a green energy zone. The Jabrayil station is expected to be put into operation in December next year.
Opportunities for developing offshore wind energy in Azerbaijan are enormous – VIEW FROM BERLIN
In October 2023, the Garadagh solar power plant with a capacity of 230 MW, built by Masdar (UAE), was launched in Baku. The Garadagh solar station has become the largest solar power station in the South Caucasus. It is capable of supplying electricity to 110 thousand residential buildings. At the opening ceremony of the SPP, Masdar signed three more investment agreements with the Azerbaijani side in the field of green energy with a total capacity of 1000 MW. This includes the construction of a solar power plant with a capacity of 445 MW in the village of Gunesh in the Bilasuvar region, a solar power plant with a capacity of 315 MW in the village of Bank in the Neftchala region, as well as a wind power plant with a capacity of 240 MW in the Absheron and Garadagh regions.
ACWA Power (Saudi Arabia) will commission the Khizi-Absheron wind power plant with a capacity of 240 MW in Azerbaijan in 2025. As part of the project, 40 turbines with a capacity of 6 MW each will be installed. Of these, 17 wind turbines will be installed in the village of Pirekyushkul in the Absheron region and 23 turbines in the village of Sitalchay in the Khizy region. Symbolically, the first 6.5 MW turbine is planned to be installed by the start of COP29.
In addition, in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea there is great potential for the development of offshore wind energy – 157 GW. In January this year, during the foundation laying ceremony for the Khizi-Absheron wind power plant, a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of offshore wind energy was signed between the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and the Saudi Arabian ACWA Power. In May, the parties entered into a Framework Agreement for a 200 MW onshore wind project.
So Azerbaijan can become a leader in the emerging Central Asia-Europe energy corridor. According to experts, even if half of the already implemented and still planned projects in the field of renewable energy sources become a reality, Azerbaijan will turn into the most important source of energy for Europe.