WindEurope and the Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance the deployment of onshore and offshore wind energy in Azerbaijan and the wider Caspian Sea area. Through this collaboration, the parties aim to harness the vast onshore and offshore wind potential in the region.
The Government of Azerbaijan aims for renewables to constitute 30% of their total installed electricity capacity by 2030. They also intend to export much of their wind energy to Europe via a Caspian-EU Green Energy Corridor. Already, they have signed an MoU with Georgia, Romania, and Hungary for a subsea cable under the Black Sea. By signing the memorandum, WindEurope and the Azerbaijan Renewable Energy Agency pledge to cooperate in several areas:
- The establishment of competition criteria, including the use of qualitative criteria that consider not only price but also value added in areas such as biodiversity protection, cybersecurity, and job creation.
- The recognition that maritime spatial planning and grid development are crucial for offshore wind development.
- The simplification of permitting processes to ensure an efficient build-out of new wind farms.
- The sourcing of wind energy components, especially opportunities for local and European sourcing of such components.
- The exchange of best practices and knowledge for wind energy deployment and electricity grid interconnectors.
- The linking of European electricity off-takers to the wind energy generated in Azerbaijan to optimise the flow of electricity.
- The development of the Caspian-EU Green Energy Corridor, with increased cooperation on the development of an electricity interconnector that will connect the Azeri electricity grid to the European grid by laying a cable from Azerbaijan to Georgia, Romania, and Hungary.
