Azerbaijan, Baku /corr. Trend I.Khalilova / The Head of Azerbaijan Economic Development Ministry's Department for Investment Policy, Asker Alekperov, said on 27 August that the Japanese corporation Mitsubishi had submitted the initial document to the Ministry which has been devised on the basis of gas samples taken from the waste site in Balakhani.
The waste site is adversely affecting the environment. Methanoic gas which is dangerous to one's health has emerged due to the decomposition of waste. Taking into consideration the threat for the near villages, the utilization of the gas is considered necessary.
"On the basis of this document, Azerbaijan intends to appeal to the UN for permission to sell its quotas for utilized gas," Alekperov said. Currently the document is under discussion with the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources.
For the first time, Mitsubishi offered sanitation of the waste sites at the expense of its own funds. Once the project has been fulfilled, a certificate will be awarded acknowledging a decrease in emission.
The gas collected in Azerbaijan will be used for electricity production. Therefore, gas reservoirs and processing facilities will be installed in the waste areas.
In April 2007 the Ministry of Economic Development of Azerbaijan and Mitsubishi signed a memorandum of understanding on the project for the application to develop the utilization of the methanoic gas collected from the waste site. The Corporation will devise a feasibility study for the project at its own expense.