A POLICY OF ECONOMIZING

Over the last decade, Azerbaijan has managed to radically modernize the electricity sector, increasing the capacity of the system by more than a third. In the last seven years alone, 17 new power plants of various types have been put into operation in the country, while the installed capacity of the power system exceeds 7 MW. At the same time, a strategy for the comprehensive and integrated development of the energy sector, which provides for the comprehensive introduction of energy-saving systems, is being developed.

The present and plans

Today Azerbaijan's power system is the most powerful in the South Caucasus and occupies one of the first places among the states of the Caspian region. The basis of the country's energy system is 13 major thermal and 8 hydroelectric power stations. In addition, JSC Azerenergy has more than 200 substations with a capacity of 500, 330, 220 and 110 kilovolt-amperes.

"Over the past decade, 17 new power plants have been built in various regions of the country, while the potential of the generating capacities has increased by another 2,300 MW. Last year alone, the generating capacity of Azerbaijan's energy system increased by 830 MW," President of JSC Azerbaijan Etibar Pirverdiyev said at a recent conference devoted to the implementation of the second state programme for the socioeconomic development of regions of Azerbaijan.

According to him, since 2006, at least two new power stations have been put into service every year in the country, and during this period, more than 10,000 km of transmission lines were built and repaired and more than 1,500 distributing substations were upgraded or built from scratch.

In general, Azerbaijan's energy capacity has increased by 30% in recent years: the first combined-cycle turbine at the Simal TPP with a capacity of 400 MW was put into operation; 7 modular electric power stations with a total capacity of 850 MW were installed in various regions of the country; the Sumqayit combined-cycle power plant with a capacity of 525 MW was put into operation; and more recently the Canub power plant with a capacity of 780 MW was launched. Small diversion and reservoired hydroelectric power plants, put into operation on rivers and reservoirs in the northern and western parts of the country, as well as in the Naxcivan Autonomous Republic, also made their contribution. A noticeable increase of about 600 MW was secured through the reconstruction of power stations built decades ago. At the same time, the construction of modern, high-tech plants will significantly reduce the consumption of fuel. For example, expenses on the generation of 1 kW/h of electricity decreased by 25%, which means annual savings of about 2 million tons of fuel. 

Azerenergy is not going to rest on its laurels, and in the next few years, it plans to increase its capacity by at least 15 %. The company plans to commission the second combined-cycle turbine with a capacity of 409 MW at the Simal TPP before the end of this year. Together with this facility, the Zabrat substation will be commissioned and a new transmission line will be built, which will noticeably improve power supply in the Abseron Peninsula. In addition, it is planned to reconstruct the Mingacevir and Varvara hydroelectric power stations. It is also planned to build a 400-megawatt hydroelectric power station on the Kura River in Tovuz District, as well as modernize and construct about 40 small hydroelectric plants. In particular, before the end of 2014, it is planned to complete the construction of five small hydroelectric power plants in Balakan, Oguz, Ismayilli and Astara districts.

According to specialists, the total capacity of the country's energy system will be increased to 8 MW in the coming years, and in the medium term (2020) about 10 % of total electricity generation will be provided by small energy plants.

Watts save kilowatts

What is the goal in increasing the capacity of the power grid? First of all, the construction of new power plants allowed Azerbaijan and, above all, its regions to get rid of electricity shortages once and for all. According to statistics in recent years, the country's power plants annually generate from 19 to 21 billion kW/h of electricity on average. It is noteworthy that in recent years, the civilian sector has significantly stabilized the demand for electricity - it is largely due to the large-scale modernization of distributing networks and the comprehensive introduction of modern electronic metering systems.

Meanwhile, in recent years the main driver of demand for electricity has been industry, agricultural and telecommunications sectors, the construction industry, services, and other rapidly developing areas of the non-oil economy.

For six years in a row, Azerbaijan has not been spending currency on the purchase of electricity from abroad, being its net exporter since 2008. And in the future, the export potential will only increase, given the large-scale modernization of transmission lines and substations in the western and southern directions and plans to supply excess electricity to Turkey and Iran.

Increasing generating and transmission potential, energy experts of the company are increasingly looking into the implementation of mechanisms that facilitate more prudent use of heat and electricity in the municipal, state, and commercial sectors, as well as in the comprehensive development of the industry. "The Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan has started to develop a national programme for the efficient use of energy resources in 2014-2020," Energy Minister Natiq Aliyev recently said.

According to him, the untapped potential of energy efficiency in the CIS countries, including Azerbaijan, is estimated at about 450 million tons of fuel. At the same time, 10 million tons of this amount fall to our country. "According to experts, there is potential for growth in energy efficiency primarily in the residential sector, in power generation and at industrial plants," the minister of energy said, adding that with the increasing global demand for energy there is also a significant increase in world energy prices, which encourages their more economical and efficient use.

The long-term objective of the Ministry of Energy and the government is to create stimulating mechanisms and update legislative regulations to ensure the mass adoption of energy-saving technologies in the private construction sector. In the residential and municipal sector, the introduction of modern technologies, improvement of insulation and the use of composite materials can have a significant effect. In Azerbaijan, with its temperate climate, the cost of central heating is comparatively lower than in Europe or many post-Soviet states, but the great distance and the deterioration of heating networks often lead to losses of up to 35-40 % of the heat produced.

Since 2009, measurements of parameters of thermal insulation of buildings, schools, kindergartens, etc. have been carried out in Baku, Ganja and Sumqayit with the support of the European Union agency for energy efficiency in the building sector (ESIB) and a Norwegian company. The results of these studies confirmed that if modern technologies of thermal insulation and rehabilitation of such buildings are used, it would be possible to save up to 70 % of energy. Thus, the annual energy consumption for heating one square metre can be reduced to 102-105 kW/h.

Along with heating, saving energy on lighting is no less important for Azerbaijan. According to statistics, about 30% of total energy consumption in homes is spent on lighting. In this respect, there has been some progress: for example, in the centre of the city of Saki, a pilot project has been conducted with the use of LED lights. To assess the effectiveness of LED-technology in street lighting, electric meters were installed, and they clearly confirmed significant energy savings. At the same time, it is planned to make about 12m LED bulbs a year at the Sumqayit Industrial Park. These bulbs will be used for more efficient lighting in residential buildings, streets, bridges, squares, trade and public catering facilities, social institutions of the capital and other cities in the country.

It is hoped that the early adoption and implementation of the national programme for efficient use of energy resources will make it possible to introduce a universal mode of electricity and heat saving. Work in this direction has already begun. In particular, Energy Ministry experts have finalized draft laws "On Electricity", "On Gas Supply" and the Code on Electricity and Gas Networks.