Azerbaijan included in Asian Development Bank’s smart energy, infrastructure program

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved new technical assistance under the regional initiative “Catalyzing Growth and Emerging Areas in Asia and the Pacific,” which encompasses four countries, including Azerbaijan.

As Caliber.Az reports via local media, the project is designed to bolster a range of strategic sectors, including agriculture, natural resources, and rural development—covering agricultural policy as well as institutional and capacity enhancement—alongside energy sector reforms spanning electricity transmission and distribution, efficiency and conservation measures, and broader institutional development.

It further encompasses information and communication technology, including ICT industries, ICT-enabled services, and infrastructure, as well as water and other urban infrastructure and services, with a focus on urban policy, institutional strengthening, and capacity development.

Agriculture, natural resources, and rural development (agricultural policy, institutional and capacity development), energy (electricity transmission and distribution, energy efficiency and conservation, energy sector development and institutional reform), information and communication technology (ICT industries and ICT-enabled services, ICT infrastructure), water and other urban infrastructure and services (urban policy, institutional and capacity development)

Funding of $4 million will be allocated through the Smart Energy Innovation Fund.

The regional technical assistance (TA) cluster seeks to accelerate the transformation of energy systems in selected developing member countries—Azerbaijan, Mongolia, the Philippines, and Thailand—with the possibility of expansion to India, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, the Kyrgyz Republic, Papua New Guinea, Tajikistan, and Tuvalu.

Spanning multiple regions of Asia and the Pacific, the TA aims to advance reliable, affordable, and low-carbon energy by identifying, preparing, and implementing integrated, cross-sectoral smart energy solutions. Key activities include the identification and preparation of both sovereign and nonsovereign projects, along with extensive knowledge dissemination.

The initiative will concentrate on clean and innovative power generation technologies, smart grids and energy management systems, grid-integration infrastructure such as energy storage, and multisector solutions, including electric mobility and vehicle-to-grid integration. It will also assess innovative business models and financing mechanisms to promote private-sector engagement and enhance climate resilience.

Planned outputs include CPS-level assessments; sector-specific, technology-specific, and private-sector development diagnostics; identification and (pre-)feasibility assessments for sovereign and nonsovereign projects; as well as strengthened technology readiness through knowledge transfer and technical training.

Azerbaijan has been an ADB member since 1999. Over this period, the bank has invested about $5.6 billion in the country—$4.4 billion in the public sector and $1.2 billion in the private sector. The largest areas of financing are transport ($1.5 billion) and energy ($1.7 billion). Under its new partnership strategy, ADB stands ready to invest up to $2.5 billion in Azerbaijan.

Established in 1966 and headquartered in Manila, ADB comprises 69 member countries, including 50 from the Asia-Pacific region.

By Vafa Guliyeva