Azerbaijan saves 840M cubic meters of gas through renewables in nine months

Photo: Trend News Agency

BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 20. Azerbaijan saved 840 million cubic meters of natural gas by generating electricity from renewable energy sources (RES) in the period from January through September 2026.

This was stated by Azerbaijan’s Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov in an article published in the official press.

According to him, the share of RES in the country’s electricity generation structure is increasing significantly. While in 2025 renewable sources accounted for 13.4% of the 28.7 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity generated, in the first nine months of 2026 this figure rose to 20% of the total volume of 21.2 billion kilowatt-hours.

“One of the key achievements in this area has been that of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. From April 21 to July 2 of this year, Nakhchivan’s electricity needs were fully met by renewable energy sources.

According to estimates by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), a country’s success in the energy transition is no longer determined by the announcement of new goals, but by the extent to which set objectives are achieved.

In this context, the commissioning of solar and wind power plants in Azerbaijan in accordance with the planned schedule demonstrates steady progress toward the goal of increasing the share of renewable energy sources in total installed capacity to 33.3% by 2027," the article states.

The article emphasizes that the first phase of the country’s green energy development plan calls for the construction of 11 solar and wind power plants with a total capacity of 2 gigawatts. Three of them, with a combined capacity of 570 megawatts, are already operational.

“By the end of 2026, the 445-megawatt “Bilasuvar” and the 25-megawatt “Shams 1” solar power plants are scheduled to be commissioned. In addition, Masdar continues to implement a 200-megawatt wind power plant project.

In 2027, preparations are scheduled to be completed for the commissioning of the 315-megawatt “Neftchala” solar power plant, the “Shafag” plant with a capacity of 240 megawatts, the “Shams” and “Ufug” plants, each with a capacity of 50 megawatts, and the “Garbi Ufug” plant with a capacity of 25 megawatts are scheduled to be completed in 2027.

These power plants are expected to generate 5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, which will save more than 1.1 billion cubic meters of natural gas and reduce carbon emissions by 2.4 million metric tons," the minister said.