Azerbaijan to Cover Half of Industry Grid Fees From 2027

From 2027 the Azerbaijani state will pay 50% of electricity grid connection fees for industrial and agricultural facilities, First Deputy Minister of Economy Elnur Aliyev said on 14 October 2026, Trend reported. He spoke at the third National Competition Forum, organised by the State Agency for Antimonopoly and Consumer Market Control.

The measure is one of several support tools Aliyev described for businesses outside the oil and gas sector. Together they aim to cut the upfront and running costs that investors and exporters face, particularly outside Baku and the Absheron Peninsula.

The measures as described

• Grid fees: the state will cover 50% of electricity grid connection fees for industrial and agricultural facilities from 2027.
• Interest: a mechanism will subsidise half of loan interest payments for borrowers outside Baku and the Absheron Peninsula.
• Guarantees: the state will guarantee up to 90% of loan principal in what the report calls the liberated territories, and up to 50% in other regions.
• Transport: up to 70% of transport costs for non-oil and gas exports will be covered, and 70% of transport costs for goods produced in Nakhchivan and shipped elsewhere in the country.
• Customs: small and medium-sized exporters will receive partial compensation for customs clearance fees.

Why it matters

Azerbaijan is trying to widen an export base that still leans on oil and gas. CBJ has reported that non-oil exports climbed 17.6% to $2.81 billion in the eight-month period covered by official data, and that the central bank has tightened some lending rules, including a 70% debt-to-income cap for loan guarantors. State guarantees and interest subsidies would work alongside that tighter credit environment by shifting part of the risk and cost from borrowers to the budget.

Limits and open questions

The reports give no budget cost for the package, no legal acts and no start dates beyond 2027 for the grid fee measure. Aliyev himself stressed that the practical effect would depend on how clear the implementation conditions are and whether eligible entrepreneurs can actually reach the support, the Trend report said. Subsidies of this kind can also favour larger firms with the paperwork to claim them, so take-up among small producers is a fair test.

What to watch

• The legal acts and application rules that turn the announcements into claimable support.
• The cost in the 2027 budget, which the state is drafting, and who is eligible.
• Whether regional lending and non-oil export volumes respond in 2027 data.

Sources: Trend, 14 October 2026