Speech by Ilham Aliyev at the opening of the Arpachay-1 and Arpachay-2 hydro-electric power plants

- Today is a momentous day in Nakhchivan. We are marking the inauguration of Arpachay-1 and Arpachay-2 hydro-power plants. I congratulate you on this splendid occasion from the bottom of my heart. This event shows once again that Nakhchivan is developing confidently and successfully today. Major infrastructure projects are being implemented in Nakhchivan. The republic is going through a period of very dynamic development.

This morning I attended the inauguration of various facilities in Nakhchivan. All these inauguration ceremonies demonstrate the strength of our country, and the work being carried out in Nakhchivan is at the highest level. I sincerely congratulate all the inhabitants of Nakhchivan, the leadership of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic on this occasion.

The city of Nakhchivan is becoming more beautiful and modern amenities are being provided, social programmes are being carried out and social infrastructure projects are being implemented successfully. Naturally, issues of Nakhchivan’s energy supply are in the forefront. We all remember well that there were very big problems with Nakhchivan’s electricity supply in its time. Under the guidance of the great leader, issues of Nakhchivan’s energy security began to be resolved, and we are successfully continuing that policy today. Five power plants have been built in Nakhchivan in recent years. It can be said that the issues of Nakhchivan’s energy security are completely resolved. In recent years we celebrated the opening of the Vaykhir and Bilyav hydro-power plants and now Nakhchivan is supplied with energy from hydro-power stations. This also presents Nakhchivan as a very unique republic worldwide since it is very rare in the world for domestic needs to be met from renewable energy sources. The realities of Nakhchivan today are such that the issue of Nakhchivan’s energy supply has been fully resolved thanks to the operation of hydro-power plants. Nakhchivan’s energy potential is currently around 220 MW which also presents the opportunity to grow Nakhchivan’s export potential.

Such are the realities of Azerbaijan today. Azerbaijan, which once sought to buy electricity from other countries, today already exports electricity from Nakhchivan to Turkey. This export is growing gradually and will continue to grow since additional measures are planned for the future to increase Nakhchivan’s energy potential. This is necessary because the population is growing. The population of Nakhchivan already exceeds 430,000. Nakhchivan’s industrial output is growing, new enterprises are opening up and social issues are being resolved. Thus, we must create new energy generating capacities in order to ensure Nakhchivan’s dynamic development in the future.

It can be said that the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is fully supplied with gas today, it is almost 100 per cent supplied with gas. Energy supply is organized at a high level. That is, issues of the autonomous republic’s energy security have been fully resolved. Generally, energy security issues are in the forefront in the world today. We see that energy security issues are closely linked to countries’ general security issues. That is, countries which do not feel confident in terms of energy security encounter major problems. It leads to dependence.

Thanks to the policy of the great leader, Azerbaijan has built its own energy policy in such a way that the country has fully guaranteed its own energy security today, is playing its role in guaranteeing the energy security of other countries, and this role will grow gradually.

Naturally, the creation and development of Nakhchivan’s energy potential was always an issue on the agenda. This issue has already been resolved and, I can say, that this is an historic event. The construction of the Arpachay Hydro-Power Plant also demonstrates today the strength of our state. As this was a very difficult project technically. This project was implemented by Azerbaijani specialists and workers. A tunnel was dug and facilities were built in these mountains. During the implementation of the project, the leadership of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic put forward a new initiative and the Arpachay-2 plant was built as well. This is today’s modern approach; this is the confident development of Nakhchivan.

As I have noted, social and economic issues are being resolved here successfully, Nakhchivan’s military strength is up to the mark. Today I inspected new hardware models delivered to Nakhchivan.

Everything is being done for the republic’s development. It can be said that unemployment has been eradicated. New jobs are being created. That is, dynamic development is being secured.

Electricity is the paramount condition for the confident development of any country, republic, including the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. You, power engineering specialists, know this well. Energy is the most important factor underlying any development, and today Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan, its integral part, have fully resolved this issue. This is a great event, an historic achievement. I sincerely congratulate you on this occasion. I wish you good health and new successes.

Thank you