Assessment of current opportunities and prospective challenges related to increasing the volume of Azerbaijani gas exported to Europe

The heating season and new gas year (which runs from October to October of the following year) in the EU, which began in October, was the focus of discussions among EU energy ministers in Luxembourg on October 15. The talks revolved around potential risks stemming from a possible halt in the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine to the Eurozone.

On October 1, discussions about Azerbaijan were held at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). Earlier this year, the mandate of Azerbaijan's delegation to the body had not been confirmed, with the key reasons being Baku’s lack of cooperation with the monitoring procedure and the country’s decision not to invite the Assembly to the February 7 presidential elections. Some members of the debate viewed the non-confirmation of Azerbaijan's mandate as a mistake, while the majority stated that no change had been observed in Baku's cooperation with the organization.

Azerbaijan has completed another election. The snap parliamentary elections, held on September 1, are now behind us. This was the second snap election held within a year. Earlier, in February, snap presidential elections took place.

Starting October 1, the "Gas Year" (running until September 30 of the following year) begins, and despite Europe's record gas storage levels (93% full), concerns are rising due to the ongoing escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and uncertainty surrounding Russian gas transit through Ukraine to the EU.