Energy Insecurity and Renewable Energy Sources: Prospects and Challenges for Azerbaijan (original) (raw)

On 3 July 2018, an accident at the Mingachevir Thermal Power Plant cut of electricity in most of Azerbaijan, including 39 regions of the country, the capital Baku, and the major cities of Ganja and Sumgait. The electricity supply was disrupted for the Baku subway, Azersu (which supplies water and sanitation services), the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic’s (SOCAR) large-scale production facilities, industrial enterprises, health care centers, and other facilities with strategic importance, as well as railway schedule delays throughout the country. Serious problems occurred in hospitals, especially in the departments of surgery, intensive care, obstetrics, and premature birth units. Azerenergy OJSC and the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan tried to explain the accident, citing a sharp increase in outdoor temperatures and a resulting 40% increase in energy demand. These statements did not satisfy the public in light of the public programs implemented to strengthen the country’s energy security. Ofcial investigations revealed that the causes of the accident were completely diferent and included a high imbalance between the plant’s infrastructure and workload; old equipment; false risk assessments; weak security measures; lack of renewable energy source (RES) stations to compensate for power disruption during periods of extreme heat, and poor performance of the responsible organizations who focused mainly on initiatives rather than acting in accordance with the strategic development plan. The accident revealed all aspects of energy insecurity in Azerbaijan, including technical shortcomings, lack of a diverse electricity supply system, and excessive economic risk, including in strategic enterprises. The country’s energy security was not organized systematically and electricity production and supply systems were not properly integrated. Further, state funds for the development of the electricity supply system were spent inefciently. However, Azerbaijan is an oil-producing country that is developing and implementing policies in line with the rising trend in RES to achieve sustainable economic growth, ensure energy security, and increase the share of non-oil sectors in the national economy. Renewable energy is one of Azerbaijan’s strategic priorities, because it aligns not only with the goal of reaching Paris Agreement carbon emissions reduction targets, but also with diversifying the energy basket and increasing energy security (Taghizadeh-Hesary et al. 2019). In other words, as an important part of its national security goals, Azerbaijan aims to use renewable energy alongside fossil resources to minimize energy insecurity. The aforementioned accident, however, revealed that Azerbaijan still faces serious energy security challenges. This chapter defines the prospects and challenges for Azerbaijan’s use of RES to combat energy insecurity. The second section of this study presents the research background, emphasizing the increasing importance of RES within the context of energy security and insecurity. It also builds a sustainable development equation and outlines Azerbaijan’s current energy security and insecurity. The third section presents the legal framework for the environment and energy issues in Azerbaijan’s sustainable development agenda based on policy documents and sources. The fourth section considers the present situation of RES transformation attempts using ofcial statistical data. The achievements, potential, and deficiencies within Azerbaijan’s current RES legal framework are also analyzed. The conclusion includes the research findings and suggestions for future study.