Azerbaijan publicizes some terms of new agreement on Gabala radar station

Some terms of a new agreement for the next leasing period of Azerbaijan’s Gabala radar station after 2012 were publicized.

Diplomatic sources said that financial issues are high on agenda of the negotiations between Azerbaijan and Russia. Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Araz Azimov also stated recently that Azerbaijan intends to raise rent payment for Gabala radar.

Baku intends to increase annual rent payment and proposes to minimize the radar’s environmental effect and it demands to modernize the station’s operation and to compensate environmental damages in Gabala region, which is considered as a tourism zone.

The negotiators also focus attention on the issues concerning the extension of stations’ Azerbaijani staff and giving main service spheres, including catering and commercial establishments in the town, where the radar servicemen and their families live, to Azerbaijanis.

Azerbaijan also makes proposals on price of power supply of the Gabala radar station. In 2010, Baku cancelled energy indebtedness created until 1997. Power supply to the station is sold at the price determined for non-population categories (commercial establishments). Azerbaijan proposes to increase these tariffs raising it to the level of export prices.

The details are not publicized yet due to the discussions on increase of annual rental.

The work on a new agreement for prolongation of leasing period is planned to be finished till the end of the year. According to the diplomatic sources, probably the new agreement will be ratified in February or March 2012.


/APA/