Azerbaijan to supply oil to Kyrgyzstan on swap

Azerbaijan will supply crude oil for processing at the refinery of SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) in Kyrgyzstan by swap-scheme, president of the Association of Kyrgyzstan Oil Traders Zhumakadyr Akeneev told Trend on Tuesday.

"Refinery will be built in northern Kyrgyzstan, and Azerbaijan will supply two million tons of oil to Kazakhstan in the Caspian Sea in Aktau, Atyrau and Kyrgyzstan, in turn, would receive oil from Kazakhstan via Shymkent pipeline in return," Akeneev said.

Thus SOCAR is expanding the geographical scope of its activities towars Central Asia, Akeneev said.

"According to our calculations, the cost of fuel, which will be produced at the refinery will be very low, and perhaps, if the plant is working, the problem of diversification of refined petroleum products in Kyrgyzstan will be solved," he said.

He noted that Kyrgyz side expects that the products of SOCAR refineries, will be better and the one the republic is receiving from Russia now.

It is planned that the next meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission of Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan will be held in Baku in August, Akeneev added.

The agreement on the construction of the oil refinery was reached on Jan.19 at a meeting of Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev and SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev. The oil refinery is scheduled to be commissioned in late 2013.

The minimum cost of the oil refinery, which SOCAR plans to build in Kyrgyzstan, hits $100 million.

SOCAR includes the Azneft production association (the companies producing oil and gas on and offshore), the Azerkimya industrial association (chemical enterprises) and Azerigaz industrial association (gas distribution).

SOCAR is the only producer of oil products in the country (it has two refineries on its balance sheet) and also owns petrol stations in Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Ukraine. Last year SOCAR purchase network of gas filling stations in Switzerland. SOCAR is co-owner of the largest Turkish petrochemical complex Petkim. The company carries out oil trade in various regions of the world through SOCAR Trading.


/Trend/