BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 25. The US looks forward for working with Azerbaijan on meeting climate targets through the work at COP29, Laura Lochman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State said, Trend reports.
Speaking at the Black Sea Security Conference organized by Caspian Policy Center, Lochman pointed out that
Georgia and Azerbaijan are great examples of how the Black Sea is not simply about hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation.
“They offer great opportunities for renewable energy, in particular, wind.
Black Sea electricity cable that has been proposed would improve the connectivity between the South Caucasus and EU energy markets and take advantage of those huge wind resources that are available,” she said.
Lochman believes that all of this is even more important with Azerbaijan being the next host of the Conference of the Parties (COP29).
“So, we look forward to working with Azerbaijan, with the private sector and obviously many other countries on further building commitments to the clean energy transition and meeting our climate targets through the work at COP29,” she added.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijan, Romania Georgia and Hungary signed an agreement to build a Black Sea sea-belt electric cable from the Black Sea coast of Georgia to the Black Sea coast of Romania on December 17, 2022.
The Black Sea Energy Submarine Cable project intends to provide Europe with secure energy sources. In order to assist the initiative, the European Commission, Azerbaijan, Romania, Hungary, and Georgia signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement in Bucharest.
The main priority of the project is to deliver renewable energy to Romania through underwater electrical cables passing through Azerbaijan and Georgia. It is anticipated that the project, with an initial budget of $2.3 billion, will be operational by 2029.
As part of this project, it is planned to lay a 1,195-kilometer power transmission line with a capacity of 1,000 MW between Georgia and Romania and install a digital connecting cable. To this end, with the support of the World Bank, it is planned to prepare a technical and economic justification for the project by the end of 2023.
Alongside Azerbaijan, two Caspian Sea countries, namely Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, may also join this green corridor initiative to bring their vast green energy resources to Europe.
The decision to hold COP29 in Azerbaijan was officially announced in Dubai on December 11, 2023. Azerbaijan will host the event in November this year.