On August 11, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva inspected the progress of construction of the “Shams 1” and “Garbi Ufug” solar power plants, with a combined capacity of 50 MW, in the city of Nakhchivan.

Axar.az reports that Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov briefed the head of state and the First Lady on the projects.

The 25 MW “Shams 1” project is being implemented across a 52-hectare area designated for renewable energy projects. The installation of 10 MW of solar panels has already been completed by “CEI Nakhchivan” LLC. Construction and installation works are scheduled to be completed in November this year. The plant will be commissioned once the network infrastructure is fully completed. Currently, 218 workers are engaged in the implementation of the project.

Following its commissioning, the plant is expected to generate approximately 57 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually and supply energy to nearly 19,000 households. As a result, about 26,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions will be prevented annually, while 12 million cubic meters of natural gas will be saved.

President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva were also informed about other projects implemented in Azerbaijan by the AGEC group of companies, which includes “CEI Nakhchivan” LLC.

The head of state and the First Lady also inspected construction work at the 25 MW “Garbi Ufug” Solar Power Plant.

Topographic works related to the construction of the plant by “Enerso” LLC have already been completed, while geological survey works are ongoing. Construction is scheduled to begin by the end of this year. The project is planned to be implemented across a 50-hectare area designated for renewable energy projects. Following its commissioning, the plant is expected to generate approximately 61 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, supplying energy to nearly 21,000 households. It is also projected to prevent about 26,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually and save 12 million cubic meters of natural gas.

In total, an area of 688 hectares in Nakhchivan has been designated for renewable energy projects and the construction of solar power plants.

The installed capacity of renewable energy sources in Azerbaijan currently stands at 2,070 MW, with Nakhchivan accounting for 108 MW, or 5.2 percent of the total. With the commissioning of the “Shams 1” and “Garbi Ufug” solar power plants, this figure will reach 158 MW.