State Oil Fund's revenues hit $1.8bn

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijani State Oil Fund’s budget revenues amounted to AZN 3.1 billion ($1.8bn), while the budget expenditures constituted AZN 2.5 billion ($1.4bn) in the first quarter of 2021, the fund has reported.

The Fund’s revenues from the implementation of oil and gas agreements amounted to AZN 2.4 billion ($1.4bn), including AZN 1.6 billion ($998.9M) from the sale of profit oil and gas during the period of January-March 2021.

Moreover, bonus payments made up AZN 765.9 million ($450.5M) and transit payments AZN 5.6 million ($3.2M) of the revenue.

Furthermore, revenues from asset management of the Fund for the reporting period amounted to AZN 714 million ($419.9M), which accounted for 22.4 percent of total revenues.

As per the 2021 budget of the Fund, some AZN 2.5 billion ($1.4bn) were transferred to the state budget. In addition, AZN 0.7 million ($0.4M) were allocated to the “State Program on Raising Competitiveness of Higher Education in Azerbaijan in 2019-2023” in the first three months of the year.

Likewise, SOFAZ’s administrative and operational expenses for the reporting period totaled AZN 5.5 million ($3.2M).

The Fund’s extra-budgetary revenues related to the foreign exchange rate fluctuations amounted to AZN 2 billion ($1.1bn).

As of 01 April 2021, the value of SOFAZ`s assets under management amounted to USD 42.7 billion, decreasing by 1.84 percent compared to the start of the year.

Even though the budget revenues exceeded the budget expenses, a decrease in the gold price and depreciation of major portfolio currencies against the US dollar resulted in the decline of SOFAZ’s assets.

Earlier it was reported that the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan sold funds in the amount of $1.9 billion at foreign currency auctions in the first four months of 2021.

Established in 1999, SOFAZ is a sovereign wealth fund, which accumulates and preserves Azerbaijan’s oil and gas revenues for future generations.

The Fund accumulates income from the sale of oil contracts, and in 2003 it started to make transfers to the state budget of Azerbaijan. As for now, SOFAZ's contribution to the country’s GDP is over 80 percent.