SOCAR and North Macedonia Deepen Cooperation with New Agreement

Discussions were held in Baku within the framework of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, focusing on the "Decarbonization and Climate Adaptation of the Cotton-to-Clothing Value Chain." Among other topics, the state of cotton farming in Azerbaijan was also addressed.

Azerbaijan has attracted significant interest from companies in both developing and developed countries, as well as from state and private sector representatives of at least 10 nations, regarding participation as shareholders in the Climate Finance Action Fund (CFAF), which has a total budget of $1 billion. The CFAF is one of Azerbaijan’s 14 key initiatives unveiled at COP29, Yalchin Rafiev, Azerbaijan's chief negotiator at COP29 and Deputy Foreign Minister, said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The Azerbaijani government has proposed that the OPEC Fund participate in financing several renewable energy projects, including offshore wind energy development, green energy corridor initiatives, and a 1 GW project planned by SOCAR in partnership with the UAE-based company Masdar.

At the COP29 event titled "Climate Finance Landscape in the South Caucasus and Central Asia" held on November 14, Roland Price, Regional Director of the World Bank for the South Caucasus, highlighted the substantial economic and environmental damage faced by the countries of the South Caucasus, which she estimated at around $100 million annually.