Azerbaijan–EU green corridor seeks Project of Mutual Interest status; estimated investment €22.1 billion

Green Energy Corridor Power Company (GECO), the joint venture developing the Green Energy Corridor between the Caspian region and Europe, has applied to the European Commission for the project to be recognised as a Project of Mutual Interest (PMI) under the TEN-E Regulation, Azerbaijani agency Report said on 9 November, citing the company.

What it means. According to GECO, PMI status would recognise the project's strategic importance, ease access to EU support, streamline permitting and boost investor confidence. GECO's shareholders are AzerEnerji, Georgian State Electrosystem, Transelectrica and MVM; the company is registered in Bucharest, according to Balkan Green Energy News.

The figures. The project envisages three high-voltage direct current (HVDC) lines of 1.3 GW each, 3.9 GW in total. Each subsea cable would be about 1,124 km long and laid at a depth of 2,200 metres. The first line, due in 2032, could export up to 8 TWh of renewable electricity a year; the second, landing in Bucharest, is planned for 2036, and the third, in Constanța, for 2040. By 2040, annual deliveries to the EU would reach about 20 TWh.

The route. The corridor starts in Baku, crosses Georgia with landfalls at Anaklia and Poti, passes through Tbilisi and Tskaltubo, then through Constanța and Bucharest to the Hungarian hub of Albertirsa. Total investment is estimated at about €22.1 billion, of which €14.3 billion is for transmission infrastructure.

Background. The feasibility study has been completed and approved by the governments of the four countries, and the project has entered its development phase, to be followed by a roadmap towards a final investment decision, the APA agency reported on 24 October. GECO then invited potential investors and partners to express interest.