BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 12. Within the COP29, a groundbreaking ceremony of the Shafag Solar Power Plant with a capacity of 240 MW was held in Jabrayil, Trend reports.
This station is the first utulity-scale solar energy and the largest foreign direct investment project implemented in the liberated territories. The project is being implemented on the basis of an Implementation Agreement signed between the Ministry of Energy and bp on 3 June 2021.
At the groundbreaking ceremony, an Investment Agreement was signed between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Shafag (Jabrayil) Solar Limited and a Land Lease Agreement between the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Shafag (Jabrayil) Solar Limited.
And then, symbolically, the first solar panel of the station was signed. SOCAR and Azerbaijan Investment Company also attended the signing. The annual average production of Shafag SPP is estimated to be around 500 million kWh. It means that 120-150 million cubic meters of natural gas will be saved annually, and 260-330 thousand tons of CO2 emissions will be reduced.
Within the Virtual Power Transfer Arrangement (VPTA) Mechanism, electricity generated by the plant will be supplied to the existing power grid, which in turn will supply the same amount of electricity back into the Sangachal Terminal. As a result, renewable energy will be used to meet the terminal's energy needs and support bp's reduction in operational waste in the Caspian region.
Thus, the implementation of the project will make a significant contribution to both the national economy and the decarbonization efforts of the consortium members, including SOCAR.
Required investment for Shafag SPP, the shareholders of which are bp, SOCAR and the Azerbaijan Investment Company, is estimated to be around $200 million.
