Minister of Energy held meetings with GECF, OPEC Foundation and GEIDCO at COP29

Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov met with Secretary General of the Forum of Gas Exporting Countries (GECF), President of the OPEC Foundation and Chairman of the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO) within the COP29.
During the meeting with the Secretary General of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF), Mohamed Hamel, the development trends in the gas sector, renewable energy sources and the increasing role of gas in the energy transition were discussed. The agreement on a single mechanism under Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement within the COP29 was highly appreciated. The Secretary General expressed his gratitude for the support shown in holding the GECF Ministerial Meeting on Natural Gas for Sustainable Development on the COP29 platform.
During the meeting with the President of the OPEC Fund Abdulhamid Alkhalifa, information was provided on the energy initiatives of the COP29 Azerbaijan Presidency. It was noted that these energy initiatives offer an opportunity for all partners, including governments, international organizations, multilateral development banks and climate funds, to create the necessary dynamics to translate goals into concrete results. The OPEC Fund has been invited to support these initiatives. The OPEC Fund has highly appreciated the provision of a 50 million USD loan to ACWA Power to support the 240 MW Khizi-Absheron wind farm project in Azerbaijan, as well as its technical assistance to support Azerbaijan’s Green Transition Plan. The Fund has been invited to cooperate in offshore wind energy development, green energy corridors, and the 1 GW wind-solar energy project implemented with Masdar.  The OPEC Fund President expressed his readiness to support Azerbaijan in its green energy transition.
The Minister also met with Xin Baoan, Chairman of the Global Energy Integration and Development Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO). Cooperation with the organization in the development of "clean energy" and the implementation of energy network interconnection projects in Azerbaijan was discussed. Information was provided on the implementation of three green energy corridors connecting energy systems with Türkiye, Europe and Central Asia. The opportunities for GEIDCO, which has experience in long-distance interconnection projects, to participate in cooperation on energy corridor projects and conduct joint research in the field of renewable energy were assessed. 
During the talks, the joint event to be held with the Ministry of Energy on the topic of "Accelerating Global Climate Action through Sustainable Renewable Energy" during COP29's Energy Day was also discussed.