Azerbeijan has confirmed the delivery of around 12 billion cubic metres of gas to the EU this year, after an agreement from last summer.
Azerbaijan will export a total of 24 billion cubic metres of gas in 2023, with half of it going to Europe, President Ilham Aliyev said on state television on Tuesday.
So far, around 8.1 billion cubic metres has been delivered annually.
Last July, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Aliyev signed a corresponding declaration of intent so that the EU could withdraw from its reliance on Russian energy, in light of the invasion of Ukraine.
Starting in 2027, at least 20 billion cubic metres is to flow annually.
Still, in view of Azerbaijan's authoritarian political leadership and attacks on neighbouring Armenia last autumn, among other things, there was also criticism following the agreement.
According to Aliyev, Azerbaijan exported a total of 22 billion cubic metres of gas abroad last year. At the same time, his country imported 200 million to 300 million cubic metres from the Russian state-owned company Gazprom for its own needs.
