Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

Alternative and renewable energy in Azerbaijan is presently mainly concentrated in producing electricity and hydropower, Deputy Director of the State Agency for Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources Jamil Melikov said at the Baku Futures Forum held this week.

"Some 10 percent of the power produced in the country falls to the share of hydropower plants. However, the country has major opportunities to generate solar and wind energy, as well as for construction of small hydropower plants," he said.

Preparations for the construction of Samukh agro-energy complex have begun in Azerbaijan, Melikov told journalists the same day.

According to Melikov, along with the preparations for the construction operations on the new complex, which is located some 360 kilometers north-west from the capital Baku, some technical issues are being resolved and excavation work undertaken.

The facility provides for the creation of hybrid power plants with total capacity of 16 megawatts. Electricity produced in this complex will seek to meet the needs of agriculture, in particular, the supply of greenhouses.

The industrial power plant will run on biogas. It is expected that the facility will be commissioned in two years, and a large-scale livestock complex will be created nearby to supply biological raw materials to the plant.

The State Agency, established in 2009, plans to double the share of renewable energy sources in Azerbaijan to 20 percent by 2020.

According to the agency, studies have been conducted and proposals made on the tariff system and personnel policy as part of formulating a strategy for the development of alternative energy in Azerbaijan. The strategy has been submitted to the government.

Three wind turbines with total capacity of 2.7 megawatts, solar panels with capacity of 1.8 megawatts and a one-megawatt power plant running on biogas have been built at the Gobustan landfill near Baku.

Operation of hybrid plants seems to be the best option to develop alternative energy in Azerbaijan.

The capacity of the Gobustan landfill's hybrid power station will be increased from the current 5.5 megawatts to 8 megawatts by 2015, which will provide electricity to the Gobustan city, and later to the entire Gobustan region.

Moreover, the creation of 1,000 megawatts of generating capacity from alternative and renewable energy sources will allow the country to export an additional one billion cubic meters of gas.

In May, the Asian Development Bank expressed its readiness to allocate some $40 million to Azerbaijan for developing alternative and renewable energy sources.

Furthermore, the International Finance Corporation approved the first loan to Azerbaijan to finance renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. With a total project cost of $15 million, IFC will provide $14 million of its own money, and $1 million from Canada Climate Change Program.