Our Career Blog’s next guest is Vugar Hashimov, Senior Specialist of the Energy Regulation and Monitoring Department of the Azerbaijan Energy Regulatory Agency (AERA).
Vugar Hashimov got his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in “Economics and Management of Production and Service Sectors” from Baku Engineering University.
Mr. Hashimov, who has nearly 20 years of experience in the energy sector, joined AERA in 2019 as Lead Inspector of the Agency’s Baku branch. Currently, he holds the position of Senior Specialist in AERA’s head office.
How would you describe your role at AERA? 
My core activities involve organizing the operations of Technical Councils in 21 “ASAN Service” centers in alignment with the relevant decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan concerning the connectivity of business entities to the electricity grid, ensuring the coordinated activity among member institutions of the Technical Council, and organizing and monitoring the services provided by the Agency at the Baku “SME House”.
I am also involved in various state-important working groups. I took an active part in the working group created to ensure Azerbaijan’s favorable ranking in the “Getting Electricity” indicator of the Doing Business report by the World Bank, published in 2020. Currently, work in this direction continues as part of the B-READY report of the World Bank.
It is worth noting that utilizing information and communication technologies for the continuous and sustainable socio-economic development of Azerbaijan and implementing public administration based on the modern principles have emerged as key priorities of the state policy. In this regard too, I participate in the implementation of a project concerning electronicization of services provided by the Agency in order to ensure modern and flexible management, increase citizen satisfaction and accessibility to services.
What aspects of your job do you enjoy the most?
When a person witnesses the fruits of their work, their love for their job increases exponentially. Through our actions, we make the lives of electricity consumers more convenient and remove any obstacles they encounter.
What skills are essential for someone aspiring to build a career in this field?
Just like any other field, the energy sector is also experiencing a dynamic development. To specialize in this sector, it is important to develop the ability to consistently observe, research and analyze new trends across the globe.
As you know, we are currently witnessing an energy transition period. Issues like energy security and global climate change are driving the shift from traditional methods of electricity production to renewable energy sources. Azerbaijan is one of the countries with high potential in renewables. Therefore, bringing up experts in this field will be very useful for our country.
Workshop as part of India Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) program, 2023
Finally, what advice would you give to those who want to join AERA?
The Agency is the most ideal workplace for those who are dedicated to their work, follow and apply innovations, committed to honesty and hard work, and enjoy working in a team setting.
