site.btaAzerbaijan Can Supply Additional Nat Gas Quantities to Bulgaria

Azerbaijan can supply additional quantities of natural gas to Bulgaria and the region, it transpired at a meeting between Bulgarian caretaker Energy Minister Vladimir Malinov and representatives of the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), the Bulgarian Energy Ministry said on Wednesday. Malinov is part of a delegation to Baku led by President Rumen Radev. The Bulgarian side is visiting Azerbaijan at the invitation of Radev’s counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

Malinov emphasized that Azerbaijan is a key partner of Bulgaria in the implementation of one of the country's main energy priorities - diversification of energy sources.

The upcoming tender for oil and gas exploration and prospecting in the Block 1-26 Khan Tervel area in the Black Sea was among the main topics of Malinov's conversation with Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov. Malinov briefed Jabbarov on the Bulgarian government's intention to open a new tender in response to energy security challenges. "The expansion of exploration activities in the Black Sea will make a major contribution to ensuring our energy independence," Malinov stressed. Jabbarov informed that Azerbaijan has recently started commercial production of natural gas from the Absheron field in the Caspian Sea and this country is interested in continuing exploration in future similar projects.

Malinov and his Azerbaijani counterpart Parviz Shahbazov discussed the development of the project for building a submarine power cable in the Black Sea as part of the EU-Azerbaijan energy agreements. The project is based on the aspiration to strengthen national and regional energy security and connectivity in the Black Sea basin, diversify supply sources, exploit the potential for renewable energy production in the Caspian region and increase the share of renewable energy in the national energy mix. In Malinov's words, such an initiative provides an excellent opportunity for Bulgaria and Southeast Europe to benefit from expanded trading capacities that contribute to strengthening energy security.

Addressing a business forum between the two countries, which was attended by representatives of leading employers' organizations and companies from various sectors of the Bulgarian economy, Malinov said that strengthening national and regional energy security, diversifying the sources of supply, and exploiting the potential for renewable energy production are just some of the promising areas of cooperation between Bulgaria and Azerbaijan.

During his visit to Baku, Malinov and Aydin Karimov, Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between Bulgaria’s innovation and Growth Ministry and Azerbaijan’s Digital Development and Transport Ministry. The document provides a basis for deepening cooperation in the fields of green transition, microelectronics, space technologies, education, and the development of entrepreneurial ecosystems.