President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the inauguration of the 100 MW Gobustan Solar Power Plant in Baku’s Garadagh District on 16 September.
Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Azerbaijan Lu Mei, and Yi Nan, Chief Executive Officer of Universal International Holdings Limited, welcomed the President.
President Ilham Aliyev was briefed on the Gobustan Solar Power Plant, Universal Energy, and the company’s operations in Azerbaijan.
It was noted that the Shanghai-based company provides green energy and energy storage solutions.
In addition to China, Universal Energy is implementing renewable energy projects in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Under a Cabinet of Ministers resolution adopted in 2023, a 300.77-hectare land plot in the Pirsaat settlement of Baku’s Garadagh District was designated as a renewable energy zone for the construction of a solar power plant.
The site was subsequently put up for auction for the development of the solar power plant, and China’s Universal International Holdings Limited won the tender in 2024.
The Gobustan Solar Power Plant is the first renewable energy project in Azerbaijan to be implemented through a competitive auction process and is also Universal Energy’s first project in the country.
The facility has been equipped with solar panels, string inverters, and transformers, while all cable installation works have been completed.
Once fully operational, the Gobustan Solar Power Plant is expected to generate approximately 200 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually. This will save around 45 million cubic metres of natural gas each year and reduce carbon emissions by approximately 97,000 tonnes annually.
It should be noted that one of the key priorities of Azerbaijan’s energy policy under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev is the expanded deployment of renewable energy sources.
Azerbaijan’s technical renewable energy potential is estimated at 135 GW onshore and 157 GW offshore. The country’s economically viable renewable energy potential is estimated at 27 GW, including 3 GW of wind power, 23 GW of solar power, 380 MW of bioenergy, and 520 MW from mountain rivers.
With the commissioning of the Gobustan Solar Power Plant, Azerbaijan’s total installed renewable energy capacity will reach 2,170 MW, while the number of renewable power plants will increase to 85. Of these, 65 are hydropower plants (1,443.5 MW), six are wind power plants (306.5 MW), nine are solar power plants (278.2 MW), three are hybrid power plants (7.3 MW), and one is a bioenergy power plant (37 MW).
Renewable energy sources now account for approximately 20.8 per cent of the country’s total installed electricity generation capacity. By the end of 2027, Azerbaijan plans to implement renewable energy projects with a combined capacity of approximately 1.5 GW. These projects, carried out in partnership with domestic and international investors, will strengthen the country’s electricity supply, contribute to natural gas savings, and significantly reduce carbon emissions.
