WindEurope and the Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency have signed a memorandum of understanding to advance the deployment of onshore and offshore wind energy in Azerbaijan and the wider Caspian Sea
Wind will play a critical role in the energy transition of both Azerbaijan and the wider Caspian region. Through this collaboration, the parties aim to harness the vast onshore and offshore wind potential in the region, contributing to the global objective of tripling renewable capacity by 2030.
Azerbaijan has great potential for wind energy development, both onshore and offshore. The government of Azerbaijan wants renewables to be 30% of total installed electricity capacity by 2030 and wants to export wind energy to Europe via a Caspian-EU Green Energy Corridor. It has already signed an MoU with Georgia, Romania and Hungary for a subsea cable under the Black Sea.
WindEurope and the Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency pledged to co-operate in a number of different areas including establishing competition criteria, including the use of qualitative criteria that do not just consider price but also the value added in areas such as biodiversity protection, cyber security and job creation.
They also agreed that maritime spatial planning and grid development are crucial for offshore wind development, as is the simplification of permitting processes, to ensure an efficient buildout of new windfarms. The parties further agreed on the sourcing of wind energy components and opportunities for local and European sourcing, and on the exchange of best practice for wind energy deployment and electricity grid interconnectors.
The agreement signed by WindEurope and the Agency also addressed linking European electricity off-takers to wind energy generated in Azerbaijan to optimise the flow of electricity and the development of the Caspian-EU Green Energy Corridor. They also discussed increased co-operation on the development of an electricity interconnector that will connect the Azeri electricity grid to the European grid using a cable from Azerbaijan to Georgia, Romania and Hungary.
WindEurope chief executive Giles Dickson said, “It’s great Azerbaijan wants to build so much wind energy and that they want to export the energy to Europe through the planned Black Sea cable. It’s win-win collaboration.”
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