BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 10
By Fidan Babayeva – Trend:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will fund the installation of the first photovoltaic power supply system with solar panels on Azerbaijan’s Boyukshor Lake, Acting Director of the State Agency for Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources of Azerbaijan (AREA) Tabriz Ammayev told Trend.
According to Ammayev, the Spanish Gamma Solutions company was declared the winner of the tender for the engineering, procurement, construction, operation, and maintenance of the floating solar station with a total capacity of 100 kW.
"With the support of the ADB, the ‘Knowledge Exchange and Technical Support for Development of Floating Solar Panels’ project is being implemented, which also envisions the formation of business models to encourage private sector’s participation in the installation of solar panels, strengthening national capacity through trainings. The pilot project for installation of solar panels on the water surface will lead to the growing interest of the private sector in this area," he stressed.
The acting director reminded that in order to improve the efficiency of the electric power system of Azerbaijan in the near future, it is planned to significantly increase private foreign investments in the field of alternative energy.
"International experience has shown that attracting private investment to increase efficiency in the electric power system can be achieved by creating a competitive environment after the transition to liberal market relations in this area," summed up the acting director.
The use of renewable energy sources was identified by the Azerbaijani president as one of the priority areas for the development of the energy industry. So, the focus is on the implementation of pilot projects for the construction of a 240 MW wind power plant and a 200 MW solar power plant in accordance with agreements signed with ACWA Power (Saudi Arabia) and Masdar (UAE) companies on January 9, 2021.
In order to fulfill the relevant order of the president of Azerbaijan, seven working groups are functioning, consisting of representatives of the ministries of energy, economy, finance, emergency situations, environment, and natural resources, justice, as well as the Committee for Urban Planning and Architecture, State Property Service, State Tax services, Central Bank, Azerenergy and Azerishig OJSCs.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @Fidan_Babaeva