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Qabil Ashirov

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Green energy is a new concept and it has a broad horizon. The International Energy Agency noted that the capacity of renewable energy expanded by 50 percent between 2019 and 2024. The sector is new and promising. Day by day innovations are discovered or invented in the sector which affects daily life. Currently, 26 percent of electricity demands throughout the world are met by renewable energy, and it is expected to expand in the near future.

The more the sector expands, the more opportunity for people emerges. According to the information, in 2021, there were at least 12.7 million people employed in the renewable energy sector worldwide, both directly and in wider supply chains, with the majority of these jobs concentrated in China, Brazil, the EU, the USA, and India.

But above all, the most important point is to join efforts to prevent a dangerous natural disaster like global warming that the world is facing.

Speaking to Azernews on the issue, Dr. Frank Musmar noted that the Paris Agreement signed in December 2015 during the COP has the ambition to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 °C compared to the pre-industrial level. He said that the world has used over 65% of the carbon dioxide budget, allowing it to stay within the 2 °C limit.

“To stay within this limit, global carbon neutrality should be achieved between 2055 and 2070. Renewable energy helps mitigate climate change, reduce air pollution, enhance energy supply independence, and stimulate employment in various sectors. Accordingly, the demand for skilled workers in the renewable energy industry is rising. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, by 2030, the renewable energy sector could create up to 30 million new jobs globally,” the expert emphasized.

Musmar pointed out that there is no doubt that China's Green Economy is a role model, with investment in research that propelled it to positive results and growth even in times of economic crisis. He said that green is an ethical investment avenue, and the economic impacts of green energy can be seen in creating new and more jobs, lowering consumer expenses, facilitating universal energy access, and reducing disaster recovery and rebuilding costs.

“Azerbaijan has a vast solar and wind energy potential. In addition to the advantages in terms of contributing to cleaning ambient air from pollutants with concomitant health benefits, especially in large cities, there is growing awareness by the local government of the eventual finiteness of the national oil and natural gas reserves. Azerbaijan has many reasons to go green. First, the country's average per capita gas emissions level is high due to fossil fuel-intensive energy systems; with climate change mitigation efforts mounting worldwide, there is a growing desire to curb emissions. Second, fuel requirements for electricity and fresh water supply consume a significant share of domestic oil production; especially with current high oil prices, retaining oil predominantly for foreign exports is attractive. Third, over the coming years, the government will likely attempt to enhance the number of jobs in the private sector to meet an imminently increasing demand from new job market entrants in the rapidly growing young population.,” the expert said.

He added that Azerbaijan's currently installed renewable energy capacity is 4.5 MW. Azerbaijan began the installment of its first primary solar plant in 2023. The government of Azerbaijan aims to increase the share of renewables in total electricity production to 30% by 2030.

“Accordingly, switching to solar or green requires far less investment into the power sector than building new coal or nuclear power plants. That means a lower electricity price, which impacts everything in the economy. A lower electricity price reduces the cost of production and increases profit. Moreover, doubling the share of renewables by 2030 would bring a range of positive impacts, including an increase in the gross domestic product (GDP) by up to 1.1 percent, an improvement of welfare by 3.7 percent, and over 1 million people working in the renewable energy sector,” Dr. Frank Musmar concluded.

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Qabil Ashirov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @g_Ashirov

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