Azerbaijan well-positioned for renewable energy - SOCAR

Advisor to the Vice-President at State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) Mustafa Gurbanli has said that Azerbaijan is very well positioned in the field of renewable energy, in his remarks at the SPE Caspian Technical Conference in Baku.

“Azerbaijan is very well-positioned for renewable energy, but the key question now is where we stand in terms of Azerbaijan and SOCAR as a major oil and gas company. The Azerbaijani government has committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 35 per cent by 2030, and to reduce them by 40 per cent by 2050. Moreover, Azerbaijan has also made a strategic decision to increase renewable energy production by 30 per cent by 2030. This is a very important decision taken by the Azerbaijani government, and SOCAR, as one of the largest companies in the region, follows the pace of the Azerbaijani government’s decision," Gurbanli said, Trend reports.

According to him, SOCAR is focusing on three key areas to achieve its current goals.

"The first is decarbonization. We are implementing a comprehensive decarbonization program in all areas we are involved and in all our operations. Secondly, we are investing in new businesses. SOCAR is working with major leading companies in renewable energy and is keen to create new businesses such as wind, solar, hydrogen, and carbon utilization. Thirdly, there are organizational transformations. Now SOCAR is in the process of transition, changing its structure and optimizing its integrated management system. These are the areas that we have chosen in our strategy: decarbonization programs, investments in renewable energy and hydrogen infrastructure, aimed at electrification and transmission programs, as well as all the advanced technologies that will help us make the energy transition,” he added.