Azerbaijan's green energy revolution: comprehensive approach towards sustainability

Climate change is one of the global problems that concern the world and is now an undeniable reality in front of all countries. Widespread use of fossil fuels and, as a result, an increase in the volume of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere, causes the temperature to rise in the world.

For these reasons, we can say that holding the COP29, which is the largest event in the world, is not a one-sided issue. In the issue of climate change, the international community and the countries of the world have a great responsibility.

Azerbaijan's hosting of COP29 can be considered the most important event of 2024 and a logical continuation of the country's strategy of transition to a green economy. The declaration of 2024 as the "Year of Solidarity for the Green World" in our country by the Decree of the President of Azerbaijan is a confirmation of the value given to this mission.

The next reality of the energy policy of Azerbaijan, which has rich alternative energy resources, is related to the development of "green energy". The strategic basis of renewable energy production policy is "Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities of Socio-Economic Development" defined by the state and adopted in February 2021. One of the five national priorities - clean environment and "green growth" country priority sets new goals.

In addition, the "Socio-economic development strategy of the Republic of Azerbaijan for 2022-2026" envisages increasing the share of renewable energy sources in electricity production to 24 percent by 2026, and to 30 percent by 2030.

When we look at the work done and the goals set, we see a country that is not satisfied with just making promises but achieves concrete results with strategic environmental decisions. This country is proving its importance to the green energy economy with practical activities. Thus, Azerbaijan aimed to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases by 35 percent by 2030, and by 40 percent by 2050, compared to 1990.

Despite its name being closely associated with oil, Azerbaijan is a leader in the implementation of approaches to the transition to green energy in the region and makes a great contribution to the fight against the consequences of climate change.

Azerbaijan takes practical measures to combat climate change and the ecological well-being of the planet. One of the main priorities in the reconstruction of the liberated territories is the restoration of the ecosystem and the protection of the environment. As the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said, Karabakh will be a "green energy" zone.

In accordance with the country's socio-economic development priorities, in the current and future period, more attention is paid to the use of renewable energy sources and the expansion of the application of "green" technologies.

Renewable energy projects with a capacity of 7 gigawatts will be implemented in Azerbaijan by 2030, 5 gigawatts of this capacity are planned to be exported.

In this direction, Azerbaijan is currently implementing a 240 MW wind power plant project with ACWA Power, a reputable company of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the field of renewable energy.

Thus, in 2022, a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the field of offshore wind energy was signed between the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and the ACWA Power Company of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The memorandum envisages cooperation in determining the main principles of cooperation in the field of offshore wind energy, assessing potential, and creating conditions for profitable investment in renewable energy projects in Azerbaijan.

According to the memorandum, on January 13, 2022, the groundbreaking ceremony of the "Khizi-Absheron" Wind Power Station was held in Azerbaijan by the ACWA Power Company.

It should be noted that "Khizi-Absheron" KES will be the largest power plant in the renewable energy sector in Azerbaijan with a capacity of 240 megawatts.

It was reported that the Wind Power Plant will be put into operation in 2025. By producing one billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, the station will save approximately 220 million cubic meters of natural gas and prevent more than 400,000 tons of carbon emissions from being released into the atmosphere.

Within the framework of the work carried out in this field, camera studies are ongoing across the country in the direction of identifying and prioritizing areas with the potential for renewable energy sources.

Along with the consumption and export of traditional energy resources of Azerbaijan, it attaches great importance to renewable energy due to its high potential.

It should be noted that Azerbaijan is one of the countries with high potential for renewable energy sources. According to calculations, the technical potential of renewable energy sources in our country is 135 gigawatts on land and 157 gigawatts at sea.

The economic potential of renewable energy sources is 27 gigawatts, including 3,000 megawatts of wind energy, 23,000 megawatts of solar energy, and 380 megawatts of bioenergy. The potential of mountain rivers is estimated at 520 megawatts.

Azerbaijan already has the experience of using wind energy and interest in this field is growing. Taking into account the environment, economic infrastructure, and geographical location, the wind energy potential in Azerbaijan is estimated at 800 MW.

The full use of this energy would save 20% of the energy produced now.

It should also be noted that in terms of wind energy, the Absheron Peninsula, coastal areas of the Caspian Sea, and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic are particularly favorable. At the same time, based on preliminary studies, it was determined that the technical potential of wind energy in the mountainous areas of Lachin and Kalbajar is 2000 MW.

According to preliminary estimates, this energy resource is approximately 2.4 billion. kW/s means electricity. This, in turn, costs 0.8 mln. ton means saving fuel.

In recent years, a large amount of investment has been made in the creation and restoration of energy infrastructure. In particular, the interest in alternative energy fields has increased significantly.

The start of operation of the Garadag Solar Power Station (GES) last year is the beginning of a new stage. Garadagh HPP is the first station built at the expense of foreign investment in our country. Thus, the project of the station is implemented with the prestigious "Masdar" company of the United Arab Emirates.

The 230 MW solar plant was officially inaugurated on October 26, 2023. Garadag Solar Power Plant is the largest solar power plant in the Caspian region and the CIS. The station was built with foreign investment worth 262 million US dollars.

It will be possible to save 110 million cubic meters of natural gas by producing 500 million kilowatt-hours of electricity at the station every year. This will reduce carbon emissions into the atmosphere by 200,000 tons. The transition to green energy also shows the country's commitment to its obligations regarding carbon emissions. According to the commitment, Azerbaijan must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2050 and create a "zero emission" zone in the territories freed from occupation. As can be seen, serious measures are already being taken in this direction.

In the field of renewable energy in Azerbaijan, implementing the Yashma power plant construction project, turning Nakhchivan into a green energy zone along with Garabagh and East Zangazur (the possibility of building a 500 MW solar power plant is being considered), and the 240 MW power plant in Jabrayl, in which British company bp acts as a direct foreign investor. plans to launch a solar power plant.

One of the importance of the energy facility "Shafaq" Solar Power Station, which will be built with BP, is that it will be built in the territories freed from occupation. It is known that President Ilham Aliyev declared these territories - an area of 10,000 square kilometers - a "green energy" zone shortly after the victory in the 44-day Patriotic War. Therefore, the construction of "Shafaq" will play an important role in the realization of this goal, and will become a part of the grand construction carried out in Garabagh and Eastern Zangazur in general.

At the same time, it plans to implement SOCAR's project on connecting electric cables to offshore platforms to reduce the use of natural gas in enterprises in the country, as well as the construction of an underwater cable through the bottom of the Black Sea to transport green energy from Azerbaijan to Europe.

"SOCAR Green" LLC is expected to implement several important projects soon. Thus, in the initial phase of the "Mega" project, "SOCAR Green" and "Masdar" companies are planning to implement 1 GW wind and solar energy projects on land. "SOCAR Green" will also implement solar and wind energy projects in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic together with "ACWA Power", "Masdar" and "Energy China". Let's emphasize that Nakhchivan has been declared a "green energy" zone due to its rich resources in the mentioned area.

At the same time, studies are being conducted on the transportation of hydrogen to the European market through the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP). In particular, the requirements for the construction of the necessary equipment for the transportation of natural gas and hydrogen mixture through the TAP pipeline are being studied. At the same time, in cooperation with international companies such as bp and KBR (Great Britain), Masdar (UAE), and Equinor (Norway), discussions are held on promising technologies for the production of hydrogen.

It should be recalled that on December 17, 2022, the "Agreement on strategic partnership in the field of development and transmission of green energy" was signed between Azerbaijan, Georgia, Hungary, and Romania in Bucharest. This agreement envisages laying a 1,100-kilometer submarine cable under the Black Sea as the main channel providing Europe with "green energy". According to the agreement, 4 gigawatts of green energy will be exported to Europe at the initial stage. In other words, Azerbaijan aimed to build a "green energy" bridge to Europe.

Azerbaijan's green energy strategy is multifaceted and all risks have been taken into account. Azerbaijan, which is the leading country in the region in terms of energy resources, will maintain its position in the green energy sector as well. This is a well-thought-out and forward-looking energy policy. These projects are very valuable both for the protection of the environment, for the provision of economic power, and for raising the general level of development.