BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 6.
The German company VNG AG is ready to increase natural gas supply
volumes from Azerbaijan and extend the relevant contract to a term
of 15–20 years, Senior Vice President for Corporate Development and
Head of VNG AG’s representative office, Oliver Hill, told Trend in an exclusive
interview on Tuesday on the sidelines of the German-Azerbaijani
Connectivity Conference in Baku.
"We began gas supplies earlier this year and would like to
increase the volumes. We are also open to extending the contract in
terms of duration. We are ready to negotiate contracts spanning
15–20 years, as well as volumes higher than current levels," he
said.
According to him, the cooperation agreement between VNG AG and
SOCAR provides for the initiation of negotiations regarding
increased supply volumes and contract extension.
"It depends largely on Azerbaijan. We are ready to increase
volumes," Hill noted.
He pointed out that one possible way to boost Azerbaijan's
export potential could be to utilize renewable energy sources
domestically to replace a portion of the natural gas currently used
for internal needs.
"The idea is to potentially replace some of the gas used
domestically with renewable energy sources, because it is easier to
supply gas to Europe than renewable energy," the VNG AG
representative said.
Hill also reported that following the signing of the cooperation
agreement between VNG AG and SOCAR about a week ago, the parties
are now proceeding to form working groups.
"We are currently establishing working groups between SOCAR and
VNG AG for each of these four areas; we will then meet regularly to
identify and explore opportunities regarding these matters," he
said. According to him, the agreement provides for cooperation on
strengthening the Southern Gas Corridor and ensuring long-term gas
supplies, meeting EU requirements regarding methane emissions
regulations, and developing technologies related to hydrogen and
its derivatives, including ammonia, synthetic methane, and
e-fuels.
