EBRD official: Azerbaijan has great untapped potential for green growth

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) representative Maya Hennerkes has highlighted Azerbaijan’s significant untapped potential for “green” growth in a conversation with local news agency Trend.

“Azerbaijan has great, still underutilised potential for green transformation. It was inspiring to observe the events at COP29 in Baku, where we saw numerous agreements signed by Azerbaijani companies in the field of renewable energy,” she said.

Hennerkes, who is the Managing Director of the EBRD’s Environment and Sustainable Development Department, highlighted that the EBRD has already financed the construction of about 1.2 GW of renewable energy capacity in Azerbaijan.

“We expect these investments to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 600,000 tons per year. In addition, the electricity generated will provide ‘clean’ power to approximately 300,000 households. Replacing diesel generators with renewable sources positively impacts human health and the social sphere overall,” she emphasised.

The EBRD official also noted the EBRD’s support in conducting renewable energy auctions in Azerbaijan.

“We have been involved in all municipal ‘green’ energy projects and helped the government establish an auction system for such projects. This promotes transparency and attracts new investors who feel confident investing in Azerbaijan’s energy sector,” Hennerkes added.

She underlined that Azerbaijan has enormous potential, and the EBRD is certainly eager to expand cooperation. “We are actively looking for new projects — those that meet sustainable development goals,” Hennerkes said.

The official also stated that environmental protection and social integration go hand in hand, mutually reinforcing each other while promoting economic growth across all regions where the EBRD operates.

“Where environmental protection is strong, it also strengthens the confidence of all social groups. By preserving nature, we simultaneously promote social integration, and by supporting both goals, we inevitably contribute to the economic development of the regions where the bank operates,” Hennerkes noted.

She added that while climate change presents serious challenges, it also opens up new opportunities.

“We are witnessing a large-scale transformation of industries — an industrial and economic restructuring. This creates new high-quality jobs in ‘green’ sectors and provides businesses with new opportunities,” she explained.

Hennerkes also emphasised that environmental and social goals do not always align: “For example, constructing a wind power plant may affect the lifestyle of local residents employed in the area. That is why we carefully follow our environmental and social policies, so that achieving one goal does not harm another.”

By Khagan Isayev