BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 20. Azerbaijan could invest in Croatia’s renewable energy projects, a source at Croatian Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development told Trend.
"We need to share our experiences and explore possible future cooperation among our companies. We also see potential for Azerbaijan to become an investor in certain Croatian RES projects," said the source.
The sources believes that there is a great opportunity for cooperation in the geothermal sector as Azerbaijan has significant know-how regarding that technology.
As for the possibility of Croatia’s joining the Azerbaijan-Europe green energy corridor, the Black Sea Cable project, the source noted that there were no talks regarding the mentioned project, but Croatia supports all opportunities that will boost decarbonization of the energy sector in the EU.
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.