Garadagh Solar Power Plant to contribute to expansion of our export potential - President Ilham Aliyev

BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 15 Trend: The Garadagh Solar Power Plant will meet the growing energy needs of our country and contribute to the expansion of our export potential, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said addressing the groundbreaking ceremony for the 230 MW Garadagh Solar Power Plant, Trend reports. "It is a very significant day in the energy sector of our country today, as the foundation of the Garadagh Solar Power Plant is being laid. I sincerely congratulate you and all the people of Azerbaijan on this occasion. It is indeed a very important event. This 230-megawatt plant will meet the growing energy needs of our country and contribute to the expansion of our export potential," the head of state said. "I am very glad that this great project is being implemented by Masdar, a world-renowned company with extensive experience in this field. As I mentioned, Masdar has a great deal of experience in this field and has been operating successfully in many countries for many years. Of course, the investment of this company in Azerbaijan is very commendable. This shows again that Azerbaijan is a very attractive country for foreign investment, an open country. Azerbaijan has a very good investment climate. At the same time, Azerbaijan is fulfilling all its obligations to foreign partners. One of our main priorities is to attract major foreign investment to Azerbaijan’s non-oil sector. Because over many years, 10 billion dollars have been invested in the oil and gas sector. This has allowed us the opportunity to achieve what we want in the field of energy. Today, Azerbaijan is also an exporter of crude oil, natural gas, oil products and electricity. We have great potential in terms of electricity exports. We are already exporting to four neighboring countries, and I am confident that we will access other markets with our electricity in the future. With this in mind, the construction of each new station, as I said, increases our export potential," Azerbaijani president said. "Masdar represents a friendly country for us – the United Arab Emirates. Our bilateral relations are at a very high level. We are successfully cooperating in political, economic and other fields. Our trade relations are growing. There are ample opportunities in the field of tourism, and I am glad that growth in this area is obvious as well. In a nutshell, the relations between the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan have great prospects. I am glad that cooperation in the field of renewable energy production is starting today. In fact, the executive agreement between the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and Masdar was signed a year ago. Preparations were underway during this time, and today we are gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony," the head of state said.