Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept.22 / Trend/ Trend, E.Ismayilov /
Azerbaijan will build 36 small hydropower plants in different regions of the country in the near future, Azerenergy (electricity production and distribution in Azerbaijan) investment department Head Rafael Abbasov said at the conference on "Power generation world Caspian 2011" in Baku on Thursday.
He said that 10 power plants are currently under construction. In total Azerenergy plans to build 280 small hydropower plants.
Abbasov said that the construction of small hydropower stations will reduce funds for electric supply and ensure the development of Azerbaijani regions. Constructing small hydropower plants is part of a process of development of alternative and renewable energy sources in the country.
Recently, Azerenergy has been working significantly to modernize the distribution system, particularly along large transmission lines such as "Absheron-Mingachevir" (300 kilometers) and "Sumgayit-Hovsan" (100 kilometers).
Azerenergy focuses on minimizing its impact on the environment. In particular, at present all of the company's power-generating facilities are "fully transferrable to use natural gas as fuel."
Azerenergy is currently among the top 50 power generating companies in Europe due to its power generation capacity. Azerenergy is also among the top five companies in terms of the fuel volume used to produce one kilowatt-hour of electricity, Abbasov said.