European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced this agreement with President Aliyev of Azerbaijan on Monday. The country will ‘double’ supply the moment Europe craves gas.
The supplier is to help fill the gap that has arisen after the European Union announced it would no longer buy fuels from Russia, following President Putin’s bloody raid on neighboring Ukraine, via the existing southern corridor of pipelines in Europe.
Even before the invasion, Russia was not a reliable supplier of gas, von der Leyen added on Monday. Azerbaijan will strengthen ties and become a ‘critical’ energy partner for Europe, she says, also to ensure that the eurozone can become climate neutral.
The supply from Azerbaijan will help to ‘compensate’ for the restriction on gas imports from Russia, the chief of the European Commission said. It helps limit the deficit, but cannot completely absorb it.
The EU and Azerbaijan signed a deal for future cooperation. Because the supplier from Central Asia also has a great potential for renewable energy, especially from offshore wind farms and green hydrogen. Europe will help the country in this, von der Leyen announced.