16:38 - 11.06.2026

---

June 11, Fineko/abc.az. Around $500 million should be spent to modernize Azerbaijan's energy grid.

ABC.AZ informs that Deputy Minister of Energy Elnur Soltanov made this statement at the Technovation Forum in Baku.

Soltanov noted that while renewable energy is environmentally beneficial and replaces natural gas, it is also costly: "We intend to produce two gigawatts of renewable energy. The UAE's Masdar company is currently our strategic partner in this field. By 2027, Azerbaijan will have two gigawatts of renewable energy. This is a major development. Alongside projects in Mingachevir, where Azerbaijan's largest power plant with a capacity of 2.4 gigawatts is located, we have replaced Soviet-era gas turbines with new ones."

He added that the efficiency of this plant has already increased by 30%: "By 2027, the two gigawatts of renewable energy, plus the modernization in Mingachevir, will save about 1.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas. In a sense, it is as if we have discovered a new Absheron gas field. However, integrating these two gigawatts of renewable energy into the grid system involves very high costs."

The deputy minister emphasized the significant alternative value of natural gas: "This gas can be exported to European markets at higher prices, and the revenue can then be returned to the national economy. Increasing the share of renewable energy sources in the energy balance was economically logical for us, and of course, beneficial for the environment."

Soltanov added that energy grids are highly sensitive technological systems: "They must be handled with great care."