EBRD to assess financing options for BESS projects in Azerbaijan

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is interested in financing projects for the creation of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Azerbaijan, Sule Topcu Kilic, Director, Head of Energy Eurasia at the EBRD, said in an interview with Report.

According to her, the EBRD already has a very strong track record of financing battery storage in other markets, both stand-alone BESS and co‑located storage alongside renewables.

"As wind and solar expand, storage becomes a natural complement to managing intermittency and support system balancing. That is why we are keen to explore financing for similar projects in Azerbaijan," Kilic said.

The regional director noted that Azerbaijan's interest in green hydrogen and clean energy exports is timely, and the EBRD supports the preparatory work in this direction.

"We have been supporting the groundwork for some time now. In particular, we have worked with the authorities on the National Hydrogen Strategic Outlook, which was presented at COP29 and published more recently. Together with our Azerbaijani partners, we are now exploring ways to support its implementation. The EBRD has a proven track record of supporting pilot green hydrogen projects in other countries, including successful examples in Egypt and Uzbekistan, and we would be happy to look at similar opportunities in Azerbaijan in the near future and support the authorities in the development of a pilot green hydrogen project as a follow-on outcome of the work we have done on the National Hydrogen Strategic Outlook," she said.

Read the full interview here.