BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 11. Construction of the 74-kilometer, double-circuit 330-kilovolt Jabrayil-Aghband power line, running from the Jabrayil substation to the state border with Armenia, is nearing completion and is almost finished, AzerEnerji Chairman Balababa Rzayev said.
He made the remarks while speaking at the fifth Azerbaijan-Türkiye Energy Forum.
Rzayev noted that Azerbaijan is also carrying out practical work to establish the necessary infrastructure.
According to him, the relevant work on designing a power transmission line from the Azerbaijan-Armenia border toward Nakhchivan city has already been completed in the Nakhchivan area. "The site allocated for the construction of a converter substation, which will be one of the key elements of the future direct electricity connection between Azerbaijan and Türkiye in Nakhchivan, has been allocated to AzerEnerji," Rzayev said.
He said that the necessary political decisions related to the Middle Corridor East-West (MEB) route are expected to be adopted soon. "The implementation of the energy component of this route will make it possible to connect Azerbaijan’s main power system with Nakhchivan’s power system and thereby establish the necessary infrastructure link for further developing the electricity connection with Türkiye," Rzayev said.
He noted that a roadmap defining specific areas and practical steps for implementing the electricity interconnection project between Azerbaijan and Türkiye has been signed. "The signing of the roadmap dedicated to future prospects is an important event. This document defines specific areas and practical steps for implementing the interconnection project between our countries," Rzayev said.
According to him, over the past five years, specialists from Azerbaijan and Türkiye have maintained regular working contacts, conducted technical visits to both countries, held joint discussions and ensured the exchange of the necessary technical information. "I would like to note that as early as 2022, initial technical analyses were conducted on the possibilities of expanding the electricity grid infrastructure between the two countries and increasing transmission capacity to up to 1,000 megawatts," he said.
Rzayev said that, as a continuation of this work, the possibilities of transmission capacity of up to 1,000 megawatts are currently being analyzed in greater detail, taking into account the long-term development scenarios of the power systems for 2032, 2037 and 2040. "This work is currently at an active technical stage. We have agreed with our Turkish partners to jointly and comprehensively analyze the prospects for expanding the transmission capacity of interconnections based on the adopted methodology. AzerEnerji has already provided all the initial data and technical indicators required for this analysis," Rzayev said.
He said that several meetings had been held with representatives of Türkiye Elektrik İletim A.Ş. (TEİAŞ) during the current year, and initial results are already available for further developing possible options for implementing the project at the next stage.
The AzerEnerji chairman thanked TEİAŞ management, technical specialists and Turkish colleagues for their professional and constructive work. "We highly value this cooperation and are working to maintain it with the same level of intensity. Our cooperation with TEİAŞ is not limited to the interconnection project. We are also closely cooperating on integrating increasing volumes of renewable energy sources into the power system, power system management, ensuring its resilience and reliability, as well as exchanging experience in other areas of system operators’ activities," he said.
Rzayev noted that, given the large-scale solar and wind energy projects being implemented in Azerbaijan, Türkiye’s practical experience in this area is of particular interest.
He also emphasized the importance of the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Türkiye-Bulgaria Green Energy Transmission Project, in which AzerEnerji is playing a more active role, alongside the direct electricity connection between Azerbaijan and Türkiye. "As AzerEnerji, we are ready to provide all the necessary technical and professional support for the implementation of these strategically important projects," Rzayev said.
"I am confident that through our joint efforts, with the support of our countries’ leaderships and close cooperation, we will be able to turn the technical work being carried out today and the agreements reached into concrete infrastructure projects and new energy links between Azerbaijan and brotherly Türkiye," he added.
