BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.1. EU hopes Azerbaijan to join the working group on renewable electricity export, Kadri Simson, the EU Commissioner for Energy, said in an exclusive interview with Trend Feb.1.
She noted that the EU has long supported Azerbaijan’s energy transition efforts via the EU4Energy program and dedicated technical assistance and investments on energy efficiency.
“The two laws on renewable energy sources and energy efficiency adopted by Azerbaijan in 2021, are a clear example of commitment, and the upgrading of energy-efficient streetlights in Ganja - the second largest city of Azerbaijan – is a good example of how EU-backed programs can work in practice. But I trust that this year we will take our long-term sustainable energy partnership, as set out in our MoU, even further. Azerbaijan has a strong interest in accelerating the deployment of renewable energy and the decarbonization of its economy,” said the commissioner.
Crucially, Simson said the EU will continue to support reforms and green investments that contribute to Azerbaijan’s economic diversification and energy transition.
“To this aim, we have proposed to establish a multi-country Working Group on the export of renewable electricity under the EU4Energy programme, which we hope Azerbaijan will join. This is a key step to advance technical cooperation on this important matter and prepare the ground for possible future investments in renewable energy, including under the EU’s Economic and Investment Plan. We will also continue to work with Azerbaijan towards the adoption of an ambitious Long Term Low Emission Development Strategy before the Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement this year. This would pave the way to accelerating Azerbaijan’s decarbonisation, and also ensure predictability of investments. In the EU, we have shown that setting a climate-neutrality target drives decarbonisation while providing investors with much-needed certainty,” she said.
The production of renewable energy exceeded 1.9 kWh of energy in Azerbaijan in 2022, according to Azerbaijan’s energy ministry.
Energy production at hydroelectric power plants exceeded 27.043 billion kWh in 2022. Some 1.596 billion kilowatt-hours of renewable electricity produced in the reporting period of 2022 accounted for hydropower plants, 83.3 million kilowatt-hours - for wind power plants, 60.9 million kilowatt-hours - for solar power plants, and 205.3 million kilowatt-hours - for the solid waste incineration plant.
In total, over 28.988 billion kWh of electricity was produced in the country during the reporting period (an increase of 4 percent). Exports accounted for more than 3 billion kWh of electricity, while imports - 137.1 million kWh of electricity.
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