Green energy from Azerbaijan
1200-kilometer cable to deliver electricity to the EU
12/17/2022, 5:46 p.m
With green electricity from Azerbaijan, the EU wants to make itself less dependent on energy imports from Russia. For this purpose, a cable more than 1000 kilometers long should be laid through the Black Sea. But it will still be a few years before the current flows.
The EU wants to secure electricity from renewable energies in Azerbaijan. For this purpose, a 1,195-kilometer underwater cable with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts is to run through the Black Sea to Romania. The heads of state and government of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary signed a corresponding agreement in the presence of EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The project is part of the EU’s efforts to gain more independence in energy supplies in the face of Russia’s war in Ukraine. “In order to integrate a growing share of renewable energy, we indeed need stronger electricity grids. That’s why the Black Sea energy cable between Romania, Georgia and Azerbaijan is so important,” von der Leyen said.
Construction work for the cable is scheduled to start in September next year, but it will not be operational before 2029 at the earliest. According to a statement by the Romanian Presidency, the agreement also provides for increased cooperation on new energy technologies, hydrogen production and energy transit infrastructure.
“Bridge between EU and Azerbaijan”
“We are preparing to build the longest underwater electrical cable,” said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. “If I were younger, I’d say you have to be rock ‘n’ roll to build a cable like that.” Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev welcomed the agreement as “our contribution to European energy security” and “a new bridge between the EU and Azerbaijan”.
Von der Leyen also said the cable gives Georgia the opportunity to become a regional energy hub. According to this, the project also enables the transmission of electricity in countries such as Moldova and supports the modernization of the Ukrainian electricity grid. Georgia and Azerbaijan lie on the Caucasus Mountains. Both countries have significant hydropower potential. Georgia and Romania sit on the Black Sea, while Hungary borders Romania.