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Norway and Azerbaijan are partners in oil and gas. Few other European countries are so dependent on natural resources utilisation in their national economies. However, public opinion and political demands dictate in both states a strong emphasis on environmental protection in exploration, production, transportation and use of these resources.
In Soviet times in Azerbaijan, little real emphasis was put on environmental protection. Environmental standards in the Soviet Union were as high, if not higher, than in other countries. However, these standards were often unrealistic and were ignored and broadly circumvented. All of this has left a legacy of environmental damage and weakened respect for laws, regulations and authorities in this field.
Also in Norway, serious accidents involving extraction and transportation of oil have occurred. However, both through formulation of relevant laws and regulations, establishment of an efficient regulatory system and the industry's own interest in maintaining public confidence, these challenges are believed to be under control. A continuing dialogue between authorities, the industry and public organisations promote the development of environmental policies and practice in the most efficient and harmonious way. A "clean" environment is an achievable target.
Political attention in Norway has therefore to a great degree shifted away from the direct threats of pollution (systemic or accidental), to the questions of how to minimise consumption of raw materials and energy, and generally to reduce the environmental load on nature. A particular challenge is to limit or control the CO2 emissions inherent in all hydrocarbon energy use.
These and other issues have made "energy and environment" a central theme of Norwegian policy and industrial cooperation, both at home and in international relations. The challenges of the Caspian sea and experience which can be drawn from other offshore petroleum areas, are such that a close cooperation in these matters is natural between Azerbaijan and Norway.
The bilateral energy cooperation found a strong reflection in the Joint Declaration of 24 April 1996 signed by President Heydar Aliyev and Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland during President Aliyev's successful visit to Norway in 1996. Additional joint documents dated 21 November 1994, 24 April 1996 and 1 June 1998 aim at strengthening the energy relations between the two countries and outline areas of information exchange and specific cooperation.
For instance, the "Memorandum of Cooperation" of 21 November 1994 contains the following item: "...to establish a dialogue .... on the effects of energy activity on the environment and on energy conservation and efficient utilisation of energy in this respect". The 24 April 1996 "Protocol" stipulates: "The Parties acknowledge their particular responsibilities for the protection of the environment as major energy exporting countries, and they will consider new projects for cooperation for that purpose". Finally, the 1 June 1998 "Letter of Intent" is exclusively dedicated to energy and environment as a field of cooperation between the two countries.
The Norwegian government wishes to further develop the "energy and environment" cooperation with Azerbaijan by giving it added practical content. Currently, the most prominent elements of the Azerbaijani-Norwegian cooperation in this field are the following:
Support for the development of new, comprehensive rules and regulations concerning safety, health and environmental protection during offshore petroleum operations, based on the risk analyses methodology. These new rules and regulations will be based on the best international practice. Project operators are Det Norske Veritas with Rogaland Consultants, Gosgortekhnadzor, SOCAR and foreign oil companies in Azerbaijan, supported by the Norwegian government with a 1 mill USD grant and by Agip, BP Amoco, Exxon and Statoil with substantial individual contributions. The Norwegian government offers two scholarships per year to qualified Azerbaijani students in the field of petroleum engineering and geosciences, with emphasis on environmental protection, at the Norwegian Technical University, Trondheim. A series of lectures has started at Western University in Baku on the subject "Environmental Management". Lecturer is Mr. Bjorn Kristoffersen of Statoil, academician of the Azerbaijani Ecoenergy Academy. Also, a lecture was held at the presidium of the Academy of Sciences on environmental impact assessments in a transboundary context. A Norwegian government grant has been given to NET (Norwegian Environmental Technology) to support cooperation on oil-polluted soil remediation (Absheron peninsula) in cooperation with the Institute for Ecoenergy in Baku. Cleaner production. One round of training courses for about 20 Azerbaijani industrial engineers has been conducted based on Norwegian experience in the home country as well as similar courses in Russia. The target is any industry which needs to improve its environmental standards and economic productivity, inter alia by reducing energy waste. The training courses cover issues generic to energy consumption, environment and economic performance. Norwegian experts have at an earlier stage provided information on the Norwegian legislative and administrative system in the environmental field and thus contributed to the development of new, relevant legislation in Azerbaijan.
The 1 June 1998 "Letter of Intent" provides for the establishment of a joint working group to identify areas of cooperation and projects. The State Committee on Ecology and Nature Use Control is the main cooperation partner here.
In the Norwegian-Azerbaijani energy and environment cooperation a central role is played by the industry itself, - by SOCAR, Statoil, Kværner and others. Statoil's emphasis on strong environmental performance world-wide has been noted with considerable interest and satisfaction in Azerbaijan.
The role of the industry is central to this theme. Often, the cheapest and best way of transfer of technology and expertise, including environmental, is through strong corporations operating internationally. The Norwegian government encourages this type of industrial cooperation.
The government has over the years received a number of project proposals, many of them related to environmental monitoring and assessment, establishment of environmental data bases etc, for the Caspian area. These are fields where Norwegian expertise is strong. The Norwegian government has contributed funds to Azerbaijan through the Norwegian consultancy trust fund in the World Bank for environment in Eastern Europe. Also Norwegian foundations like Petrad and Intsok are actively promoting Norwegian - Azerbaijani environmental cooperation and professional exchanges.
The Norwegian government wishes to be a catalyst for an efficient environmental cooperation with Azerbaijan. We wish to target our cooperation in areas where Norway has specific and relevant experience, and where our assistance may complement other efforts at developing and strengthening the environmental protection system in Azerbaijan (e.g. the World Bank, UNDP, Tacis etc.). In turn this will benefit not only the Azerbaijani society at large, but also the industry itself, and particularly the foreign energy industry which needs and wants clear and modern rules and standards in order to correctly justify and promote their energy investments in Azerbaijan.