The meeting with the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations focused on gas supply capacities and future hydrogen use.
Under the motto “Azerbaijan beyond Oil and Gas”, representatives of German companies met for a working breakfast with Parviz Shahbazov, Minister of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan, on the sidelines of the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue on 29 March 2022. At the invitation of the Committee on Eastern European Economic Relations (Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft) and the German Wind Energy Association (Bundesverband WindEnergie), the focus was on two key aspects: on the one hand, Azerbaijan’s role with regard to European security of supply for oil and gas, and on the country’s strategy for the expansion of renewable energies and the production of green hydrogen.
Ost-Ausschuss Regional Director for Eastern Europe Stefan Kägebein moderated the meeting together with Wolfram Axthelm, Managing Director of the German Wind Energy Association. Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov underlined Azerbaijan’s potential to contribute to European energy security. Currently, the capacity of the Southern Gas Corridor pipeline is being fully utilised. At the same time, discussions are being held with international financial institutions on when and how capacities could be expanded.
For the future, there are also plans to strategically develop renewable energies. Numerous measures have already been decided and initiated for the turnaround. For example, as early as 2030, about 30 per cent of Azerbaijan’s electricity generation is to come from environmentally friendly sources, such as solar and wind parks. A total of about 1500 megawatts of “green” electricity capacity is to be generated by that time. The focus is to be on the development of onshore and offshore wind capacities. But there is also considerable potential in the solar sector. In the future, the connection via the Southern Corridor will also be used for the admixture of hydrogen.
Legal framework conditions have already been changed or are the subject of discussion processes. The development of the necessary energy infrastructure for local production and export is important for Azerbaijan as a location, but also for companies. Three major pilot projects are already underway with a total of almost 750 megawatts of wind energy. Legal framework conditions must be further developed in dialogue with Azerbaijani and international actors. In this context, a trip and forum on green energy and sustainability is planned for June 2022 in Baku.
Source: www.ost-ausschuss.de, haqqin.az