During his official visit to Beijing, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met on April 24 with Song Hailiang, chairman of China Energy Engineering Corporation (Energy China), as part of a broader deepening of energy cooperation between the two countries. 

Baku is accelerating its partnerships with major Chinese energy firms in developing large-scale renewable infrastructure, including offshore wind, floating solar and battery storage projects.

Aliyev and Song discussed Energy China's ongoing projects in Azerbaijan, including its role as contractor for a 1-GW offshore wind farm in the Caspian Sea and its solar investments in Fuzuli district. The Energy China chairman proposed joint work on regional energy corridors, which Aliyev welcomed as strategic. The two sides also exchanged views on creating a long-term joint energy planning framework and discussed the possibility of establishing an energy research centre in Azerbaijan.

Coinciding with Aliyev’s visit, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Energy signed six agreements with major Chinese energy companies for projects totalling at least 2.4 GW in capacity. The most prominent among them is a memorandum with China Datang Overseas Investment and PowerChina Resources for a 2-GW offshore wind farm in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea.

Other signed agreements include a 100-MW floating solar power plant on Lake Boyukshor with an integrated 30-MW battery energy storage system, led by China Datang and SOCAR Green. A 160-MW solar project is to be developed by PowerChina and SOCAR Green, with a potential future battery integration and an expected output of 332mn kWh annually by 2028. A 100-MW Gobustan solar project by Universal Solar Azerbaijan (Universal Energy's local subsidiary) is forecast to save 39mn cubic metres of natural gas and reduce emissions by 86,000 tonnes per year (tpy). The plant is scheduled to come online in 2026.

A separate implementation agreement was signed with China Energy Overseas Investment for the phased development of the offshore wind farm, including feasibility, design, construction, financing and maintenance.

The Ministry of Energy also signed a memorandum with China’s Electric Power Planning & Engineering Institute to jointly assess renewable energy grid integration needs out to 2028. The goal is to develop technically and economically optimal transmission solutions for Azerbaijan’s growing renewables portfolio.

The deals not only bolster Azerbaijan’s push to diversify its energy mix but also place China at the centre of Baku’s energy transition roadmap. According to Energy China, which controls roughly 50% of China’s renewables market and operates in 147 countries, the agreements reflect the company's strategic intent to expand its presence across the Caspian and broader South Caucasus. Aliyev described the cooperation with Energy China as “strategic and a priority”. The agreements also hint at a regional power realignment, with Azerbaijan positioning itself as a key node in future energy corridors spanning Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe.