Minister: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan work on exporting green energy to Europe

Both Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan pay great attention to the development of renewable energy projects, Kazakh Energy Minister Almassadam Satkaliyev said.

He made the remarks at the panel discussion within the Astana International Forum (AIF 2023), Trend reports.

“At the same time, we both strive to launch exports of renewable energy to the European market. In this regard, with our Azerbaijani colleagues, we have already launched the implementation of a high-voltage cable project through the bottom of the Caspian Sea. This line will connect Kazakhstan with Türkiye, and then further with Europe,” he said.

The minister noted that the same project is also underway in the Black Sea, where Azerbaijan also participates.

Besides, Satkaliyev stated that Kazakhstan continues to work with Azerbaijan on traditional energy resources projects, noting that the country already uses Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and Baku-Supsa pipelines for its oil exports.

In March 2023, Azerbaijan’s State Oil Company (SOCAR) announced the commencement of Kazakh oil transit through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline. The first shipment of crude oil from the Tengiz field arrived on March 23 at the Sangachal Terminal in Azerbaijan, aboard the Azerbaijani tanker fleet vessel “President Heydar Aliyev.” The second batch of Kazakh oil was transported on March 27 to be pumped into the BTC pipeline.

The transportation took place under a Master Agreement signed between SOCAR and the Kazakh national energy company KazMunayGas, which enables the transit of 1.5 million tons of oil annually. Both parties have agreed to conduct 12-14 tanker voyages between the ports of Baku and Aktau until the end of 2023.

In 2022, prior to receiving Kazakh oil, SOCAR carried out essential upgrades to the collector pipeline network at the Sangachal Terminal. These upgrades were aimed at increasing the capacity utilization of the pipeline network and facilitating the intake of Kazakh oil into the BTC pipeline.