BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 26. The second day of Azerbaijan & Central Asia Green Energy Week 2025 is taking place in Baku, Trend reports.
The event was attended by Rana Humbatova, Deputy Director of the
Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency under the Ministry of Energy of
the Republic of Azerbaijan; Omar Tsereteli, Deputy Head of the
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Department of the Ministry
of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia; and Vyacheslav
Gordienko, Investment Manager for Infrastructure in Europe and the
South Caucasus at the IFC.
and other representatives of energy companies.
The event covered topics such as the prospects for hydrogen energy development in Azerbaijan, wind energy development: innovative solutions from turbine manufacturers, and the role of the IFC as a partner: from project creation to long-term financing.
Addressing the event, Omar Tsereteli, Deputy Head of the Department for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Sources at the Georgian Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, stated that Georgia and Azerbaijan are developing ideas and mechanisms for the supply and transit of green hydrogen.
“Georgia's cooperation with neighboring countries within the framework of the ‘green energy corridor’ projects is aimed at developing ideas for the supply, transit, and export of green hydrogen to Europe,” he said.
According to him, despite the fact that some projects have been temporarily postponed for objective reasons, work in this direction continues.
"Together with Azerbaijan, we have an initiative called the Green Energy Corridor. Within its framework, we are developing ideas and mechanisms for the supply and transit of green hydrogen, both by pipeline and by sea, to Romania and further to Europe. We have already identified several possible routes, some of which look quite realistic," Tsereteli noted.
He added that working groups on this issue meet regularly and expressed hope that the efforts undertaken will yield concrete results in the near future.
Rana Humbatova, deputy director of the State Agency for Renewable Energy under the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan, noted that Azerbaijan is embarking on a new phase in the development of hydrogen energy with the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
According to her, a consultant will be selected within a month:
"The tender has been completed, and 13 companies have submitted their proposals to the EBRD. The government is also involved in the evaluation process. The consultant will participate in the preparation of a strategy implementation plan, which will cover issues of regulation, land use, distribution of renewable energy sources, and other key aspects."
She noted that the production of “green” hydrogen requires a direct connection to renewable energy sources, which is a prerequisite for certification:
“This decision was not up to us, but we are obliged to act in accordance with the established rules. Hydrogen remains an extremely promising area for Azerbaijan, but the decisive factors here will be the right approach and partnership.”
Humbatova emphasized that Azerbaijan has already signed cooperation agreements with Georgia, Hungary, Romania, as well as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan:
"These agreements also provide for cooperation in the field of hydrogen. However, the key question is whether its implementation will take place at an early or later stage. We need to take into account the position of our partners from the European Union, as they will be the main buyers."
She also recalled that the EU is experiencing difficulties in achieving its stated goal of producing and using 10 million tons of hydrogen by 2030, which increases the need for imports:
“Two months ago, Europe created a special platform that brings together hydrogen producers and buyers. We approached SOCAR with a proposal to consider participating in this platform. The company said it would explore such opportunities, as the availability of buyers remains our main priority.”
According to Humbatova, Azerbaijan presented its strategic position at COP29:
“Three development scenarios were proposed. Today, a balanced scenario seems more realistic. But given Azerbaijan's potential in the field of renewable energy sources, we do not rule out the implementation of a more ambitious scenario. Everything will depend on demand and the availability of buyers,” she added.
Furthermore, Ali Malik, Senior Investment Specialist at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), stated that the key factors for attracting international investors to Uzbekistan are regulatory certainty, the availability of bank transaction documents, and risk mitigation mechanisms such as partial credit guarantees and blended finance.
According to the expert, the breakthrough in attracting investors to Uzbekistan began with the Navoi Solar (100 MW) project, implemented with the support of the IFC, after which the ADB financed major projects, including Summer Solar. He noted that policy consistency remains a decisive factor, and ADB's partial credit guarantees give investors confidence, as in the event of an off-taker default, the obligations are backed by an AAA-rated institution.
In addition, Ali Malik emphasized the importance of blended finance, which helps make first-of-a-kind projects more viable and provides benefits to end users through lower tariffs.