The recent interview given by Mr. President Ilham Aliyev to local television channels once again demonstrated that Azerbaijan's energy strategy has entered a new phase.
In his interview, the head of state drew attention to the importance of several issues concerning the development of Azerbaijan's gas exports, alongside a number of priority areas. President Ilham Aliyev emphasized in his interview that the expansion of both the volume and geography of gas exports holds strategic importance for the country, stating that Azerbaijan currently supplies gas to 14 countries via pipelines, and this year, two more European countries are expected to be added to this list. With this, the geography of Azerbaijan's gas exports will cover 16 countries, which is a significant indicator on a global scale.
In this context, one of the main questions of interest is which new European countries Azerbaijan will begin gas transportation to this year, and how this cooperation will contribute to the development of the country's oil and gas sector.
In a statement to Modern.az, Azer Badamov, Deputy Chairman of the Milli Majlis Committee on Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship, stated that a special place was given to issues of Azerbaijan's gas exports in President Ilham Aliyev's interview with local television channels.
“The head of state noted that Azerbaijan ranks first in the world for diversifying the geography of gas exports via pipelines. Currently, Azerbaijan exports gas to 14 countries, and this year, two more European countries are expected to be added to the export geography. In 2025, our country exported over 25 billion cubic meters of gas.
The Deputy Chairman added that it is expected that the **two additional countries that will export gas from Azerbaijan to Europe this year will be Slovenia and Albania**:
“The cessation of gas supplies from Russia has put many European countries in a difficult situation. Slovenia and Albania have expressed their desire to purchase gas from Azerbaijan. In this regard, it is expected that Azerbaijan will expand its export geography by exporting gas to two more countries in Europe this current year,” said A. Badamov.
The MP emphasized that these processes will create conditions for the further expansion of Azerbaijan's gas export potential in the near future:
“This, in turn, will allow for the expansion of the export geography and cover more countries. The increase in gas exports is of significant importance both in terms of economic profitability and the strengthening of Azerbaijan's international positions. Under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan is recognized as a reliable partner, and for this reason, the number of foreign partners wishing to cooperate with our country is continuously increasing.
Chairman of the Oil Research Center, Ilham Shaban, recalled that Azerbaijan began gas transportation to North Macedonia starting from December 1.
“In addition, according to the agreement signed in December, a total of 800 million cubic meters of gas will be supplied to Hungary over two years, starting from January 2026.
At the same time, the number of countries that currently do not purchase gas from Azerbaijan but are negotiating in this direction is not limited to two countries. Moldova is also among these countries. It has even been repeatedly noted that Moldova is negotiating with Azerbaijan regarding gas supplies. Furthermore, gas transportation opportunities exist via the Trans-Balkan route, extending to Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and even Ukraine”.
I. Shaban also noted that the Ukrainian side is interested in purchasing commercial gas from Azerbaijan:
“I would like to note that last year, Ukraine purchased a small volume of gas from Azerbaijan for testing purposes. In addition, the transportation of Azerbaijani gas has been tested to some extent in the direction of some former Yugoslav countries, as well as Slovakia. Although gas supply to Slovakia was carried out once, a more stable and long-term commercial export, especially via Hungary, is considered a realistic prospect”.
According to our interviewee, the main directions for Azerbaijan's gas exports in the next phase will be Eastern European and Balkan countries.
