BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 18. EU and Azerbaijan will encourage financing of the Southern Gas Corridor’s expansion, Trend reports citing the text of the new Memorandum of Understanding on a Strategic Partnership in the Field of Energy signed today between the EU and Azerbaijan.
The Sides acknowledge that any further exports of natural gas to the European Union beyond those that are being delivered to date will require significant investments to the expansion of the Southern Gas Corridor pipeline network and the upstream project development.
The Sides endeavour to encourage financing of the expansion of the Southern Gas Corridor pipeline network taking into consideration the EU’s climate policies and its REPowerEU strategy, including through cooperation with international financial institutions.
The Sides endeavour to support infrastructure, to the extent possible, to be conversion-ready with a view to transporting renewable gases, including hydrogen and its derivatives, so as to avoid lock-in of resources. This entails that new infrastructure should be capable of carrying renewable and low-carbon gases, including hydrogen and its derivatives, as well as making existing infrastructure future proof and hydrogen ready. The Sides endeavour to promote mutually beneficial natural gas trade, anticipating future trade in hydrogen, hydrogen-derivatives and other renewable gases (bio-methane, etc.), and renewable electricity.
To this end, the Sides, within their powers and legislative constraints, endeavour to support the optimal use of existing energy infrastructure. This would also entail support in making the existing infrastructure, to the extent possible, capable of carrying new energy sources like hydrogen and the development of the necessary additional, future infrastructure and assets.
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