Mar 10, 2025
Azerbaijan and partners urge EU to grant PMI status for major green energy project
Azerbaijan, Georgia, Hungary, and Romania have sent a letter to the European Union Energy Commissioner, Kadri Simson, requesting Project of Mutual Interest (PMI) status for the "Black Sea Energy" project, a major underwater electricity cable initiative.
According to Report, Azerbaijan's Minister of Energy, Parviz Shahbazov, noted on X that that the recent meeting of ministers and the steering committee for the green energy corridor between Azerbaijan, Georgia, Hungary, and Romania had yielded important results.
A joint letter from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, and Hungary was signed, addressing EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson to grant the project PMI status. Additionally, essential steps were agreed upon to include the project in the EU’s Ten-Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP) and to involve Bulgaria in the initiative, as well as the fiber-optic cable component, the minister said.
Shahbazov added that during the meeting, a document was also signed transferring the authority and responsibility for the techno-economic justification of the project to the joint venture GECO Power Company.
The founding partners of the joint venture include energy operators Transelectrica (Romania), Georgian State Electrosystem (Georgia), Azerenerji (Azerbaijan), and MVM Energy (Hungary).
Initially, the cable will be designed to export 4 GW of "green" energy.
On December 17, 2022, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, and Hungary signed an agreement on strategic partnership to build the 1,195 km underwater "Black Sea Energy" cable. In June 2023, Bulgaria expressed its intention to join the project.
In May 2024, the energy operators of Azerbaijan, Romania, Georgia, and Hungary signed a memorandum to establish a joint venture under the "Black Sea Energy" project. A shareholder agreement was signed in September between the energy operators of the four countries—Azerenerji, Transelectrica, Georgian State Electrosystem, and MVM—to create the Green Energy Corridor joint venture, tasked with implementing the project.
The construction of the "Black Sea Energy" cable is estimated at €3.5 billion and will take 3-4 years. The European Commission plans to allocate €2.3 billion for the project.
