Azerbaijan plans to increase gas and electricity exports - Aliyev

BAKU. March 12 (Interfax) - Azerbaijan plans to expand the volume and geographical range of natural gas and electricity exports to meet growing demand, President Ilham Aliyev said at the Global Baku Forum on Thursday.

"This is now to a certain degree disrupted. We see that the unprecedented rise of oil and gas prices creates a lot of problems for consumers - and not only for consumers. If somebody thinks that this unbalanced price is good for those who produce and export oil, it's wrong. Many countries which produce and export oil and fossil fuels have sovereign wealth funds, and these sovereign wealth funds invest in different instruments, and when the stock market collapses, the countries lose more on stock markets than they earn from the high oil price," the Report news agency quoted Aliyev as saying.

He said that Azerbaijan, as a responsible member of the OPEC+ format, was in favor of a balanced and predictable oil price. "Our efforts in OPEC+, as a mediator and as a country which invested a lot in finding a common solution, are highly appreciated," he said.

Energy security is more than ever an integral part of the national security of countries. "Azerbaijan is producing and exporting all types of energy segments - oil, gas, oil products, petrochemicals, electricity. And we are planning to increase our export, especially of natural gas and electricity, due to the demand on the market and due to our expanded geography of supplies. When we met last time, exactly a year ago, at that time, our clients, the countries which were receiving our gas, numbered 12. In one year, the number grew to 16. And all of them receive gas from Azerbaijan by pipelines," Aliyev said.

As an exporter of natural gas by pipelines, with respect to the geographical coverage of the countries, Azerbaijan is number one in the world, Aliyev said. "And the volume of export is growing and will grow, and this is an important factor for energy security for many countries. And now also, as a reliable supplier of oil to the international market, Azerbaijan will continue to contribute to energy security," Aliyev said.