Economic Development in Azerbaijan

[Azeri440]

French Alstom to supply 50 freight locomotives to Azerbaijan

French company Alstom is expected to supply its electric locomotives to Azerbaijan in 2017.

Alstom will supply 50 electric locomotives with 40 being freight and 10 – passenger. The locomotives will be brought to the country under the project being realized by Azerbaijan Railways, Zaura Rakhmedova, Alstrom communication manager told Trend.

“Freight locomotives will be manufactured in the production area located in Astana, Kazakhstan while passenger locomotives will be produced in France,” Rakhmedova said.

The AZ8A electric locomotives with the capacity to pull up to 9,000 metric tons at a speed of 120 km per hour are considered to be one of the most powerful in the world. The locomotives will be manufactured specifically for Azerbaijan. New locomotives will give an impetus for increasing the transportation capacity of the company.

Azerbaijan Railways LTD and Alstorm Company signed a contract on the supply of 50 freight locomotives in 2014 while the final agreement was reached in May 2015. The total amount of the contract is 300 million euros.

http://www.azernews.az/business/96664.html

AZ8A electric locomotives

As for passenger trains, it will most likely be Alstom Coradia Polyvalent

As for other orders to modernize rail fleet includes 10 TE33A (Evolution ES44ACi)

30 Stadler Flirt 3

and 5 Stadler double-deck EMUs for Baku - Sumgait route.

Stadler is also currently building its factory in Azerbaijan, and Baku Metro is planning on making a deal with Alstom for a factory in Azerbaijan.

next phase of Southern Gas Corridor starts in 2 days (TAP)

 

[Azeri440]

European Investment Bank to fund $80 mil expansion project of Petlim Container Port to 1.5 mil TEU capactiy, bringing it up to 3rd biggest port in the Aegean Sea, SOCAR has 70% stake in the port and 51% of the entire Petkim Industrial Zone, which I believe is the biggest Industrial Zone in Turkey.

http://abc.az/rus/news/main/96267.html

Newly-built Khankendi vessel re-floated at Baku Shipyard

The Shah Deniz consortium announced that the subsea construction vessel (SCV) “Khankendi” was recently re-floated into the Caspian Sea at the Baku Shipyard quay.

The vessel has been specifically designed and built to install the subsea structures of the giant Shah Deniz Stage 2 gas development project.

This follows the safe transportation of the vessel’s hull strips from Singapore to Azerbaijan and their successful integration with bow blocks built at the Baku Shipyard on the Caspian Sea. The Khankendi vessel is currently 80 percent complete and is on track for full completion by April 2017 when Shah Deniz Stage 2 subsea construction activities are planned to commence. Until that time the vessel will be docked at the shipyard quay for completion of the remaining construction and commissioning activities.

“The launch of the vessel out of the dry dock at the Baku Shipyard is an important milestone achieved by Shah Deniz Stage 2 project,” Gordon Birrell, BP’s Regional President for Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, said. “The Shah Deniz consortium is proud to be involved in the construction of the Khankendi, which, we believe, marks a new era in the shipbuilding history of not only Azerbaijan but also the entire Caspian region.”

“This flagship of the Caspian oil and gas fleet is designed to construct world-class subsea structures for the first time in the Caspian at the water depth of up to 550 meters,” he said. “We look forward to the full completion and commissioning of the vessel when it will be deployed to the Shah Deniz area to commence subsea installation works for the Stage 2 gas development project”.

The Khankendi vessel is planned to perform subsea construction activities on the Shah Deniz field between 2017 and 2027. The $378 million facility is a unique vessel built under DNV GL’s (Norway and Germany) classification supervision. It is 155 meters in length, 32 meters in width and has a 13 meter main deck. The vessel will be equipped with dynamic positioning to allow working in 2.5 meter significant wave height (Hs), a 900 ton main crane for 600m subsea operation, an 18-man two-bell diving system, two work-class remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), a strengthened moon pool, two engine rooms with 6×4.4MW + 2×3.2MW generators and has a total weight of 17,600 tons and a carrying capacity of 5,000 tons at 6.5 meters draft.
Source: AzerNews

http://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/newly-built-khankendi-vessel-re-floated-at-baku-shipyard/

2nd Phase of the Biggest Shipyard on the Caspian is well underway

 

[Azeri440]

French Alstom to supply 50 freight locomotives to Azerbaijan

French company Alstom is expected to supply its electric locomotives to Azerbaijan in 2017.

Alstom will supply 50 electric locomotives with 40 being freight and 10 – passenger. The locomotives will be brought to the country under the project being realized by Azerbaijan Railways, Zaura Rakhmedova, Alstrom communication manager told Trend.

“Freight locomotives will be manufactured in the production area located in Astana, Kazakhstan while passenger locomotives will be produced in France,” Rakhmedova said.

The AZ8A electric locomotives with the capacity to pull up to 9,000 metric tons at a speed of 120 km per hour are considered to be one of the most powerful in the world. The locomotives will be manufactured specifically for Azerbaijan. New locomotives will give an impetus for increasing the transportation capacity of the company.

Azerbaijan Railways LTD and Alstorm Company signed a contract on the supply of 50 freight locomotives in 2014 while the final agreement was reached in May 2015. The total amount of the contract is 300 million euros.

http://www.azernews.az/business/96664.html

AZ8A electric locomotives

View attachment 305596

As for passenger trains, it will most likely be Alstom Coradia Polyvalent

View attachment 305597

As for other orders to modernize rail fleet includes 10 TE33A (Evolution ES44ACi)

View attachment 305598

30 Stadler Flirt 3

View attachment 305599

and 5 Stadler double-deck EMUs for Baku - Sumgait route.

View attachment 305600

Stadler is also currently building its factory in Azerbaijan, and Baku Metro is planning on making a deal with Alstom for a factory in Azerbaijan.

next phase of Southern Gas Corridor starts in 2 days (TAP)

View attachment 305601

 

[Azeri440]

International logistics hub to be created in Azerbaijan with DHL support

Baku, Fineko/abc.az. CJSC Azerbaijani Railways (ADY) and DHL agreed on the establishment of a major logistics hub in Azerbaijan.

ADY reports that its chair Javid Gurbanov met with DHL’s CEO for Eastern Europe Kerem Inanc and General Executive Director for China Steve Huang in Istanbul.

"During the meeting the parties discussed Azerbaijan’s transport potential, success in the transit and cargo transportation, realized infrastructure projects, and prospects for further cooperation," ADY informed.

The sides agreed on the establishment of a large logistics hub in Azerbaijan, where cargo will be accumulated and later distributed to Turkey, Europe, Russia and other countries.

Following the meeting the sides signed a Protocol of Intentions.

http://abc.az/eng/news/main/96280.html

 

[Azeri440]

Azerbaijan joins Viking Train project

Azerbaijan has joined the international railway project Viking Train, which will enable to up the country’s trade and transport potential.

A protocol on Azerbaijan Railways' joining the railway project Viking Train was inked on May 13, Nadir Azmammadov, spokesman of Azerbaijan Railways told Trend.

Companies which participate in the project met in Baku on May 12-13, said Azmammadov, adding that this meeting mulled several issues like the final works on the train's operation, the prospects for developing and expanding the piggyback train project, the tariff terms for 2017, the tariffs for export and import operations and the additional services.

Representatives of Azerbaijan Railways, ADY Express Ltd., railway agencies of Lithuania, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, as well as, the rail freight transporters of Bulgaria and Romania, and other operators of the project took part in the meeting.

The participants of the meeting considered an appeal by Azerbaijan Railways and gave consent to the company's joining the project, and after that the parties signed a corresponding protocol, he added.

It is worth mentioning that the piggyback Viking Train project was launched in 2003. The project's participants are Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia and since 2012 Bulgaria.

The total length of the Ilyichevsk (Ukraine)-Minsk (Belarus)-Draugyste (Lithuania) route is 1,766 kilometers.

In September 2015, the Ukrainian Railways announced about the possibility of cargo transportation by Viking Train from China to Europe.

Azerbaijan’s participation in the Viking project will extend the container train route to more distant Asian countries by providing an alternative route to reach Kazakhstan and China, as well as, more freight will be transported to the Baltic region from Kazakhstan and China, and the new Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will be used to transport containers from Turkey to Ukrainian ports.

The Viking project has been recognized as one of the best examples of developing the East-West and North-South transport corridors.

http://www.azernews.az/business/96663.html

 

[Azeri440]

meanwhile rapid expansion of SOCAR continues

SOCAR-Siemens project in Malta to be launched in late 2016

The first stage of gas & power generating project, implemented by SOCAR and Siemens in Malta, will be launched at the end of 2016.

Vagif Aliyev, the head of the Investment Department of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), there is a little delay with the construction company fabricating in Singapore a barge for liquefied gas, but the facility will be commissioned before the end of the year.

SOCAR trading house, SOCAR Trading, will be the exclusive supplier of liquefied natural gas for this project.

This project actually relates to the gasification of the island state, includes the construction of onshore regasification facilities and a new 210 MW combined-cycle power plant.

http://abc.az/eng/news/main/96509.html

SOCAR Office Tower officially opened

PETKIM

 

[Azeri440]

SOCAR Polymer

 

[Azeri440]

Azerbaijan and Ukraine will jointly manufacture An-178 after 2018, currently Azerbaijan has 10 An-178s on order

http://military-informant.com/airfo...ve-novyih-transportnyih-samoletov-an-178.html

 

[Azeri440]

Welcome to Baku City Circuit

 

[Azeri440]

AZAL to purchase MC-21 aircrafts

Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) and Russian leasing company "Ilyushin Finance" has signed a memorandum of intent for purchase of 10 aircrafts MS-21.

The document was undersigned by the general director of "Ilyushin Finance Co.", Alexander Rubtsov, and AZAL president Jahangir Askarov, Azertac reported.

The signing ceremony took place in the presence of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, and First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yagub Eyyubov, TASS reported.

MC-21 is a family of new generation medium range 200-seat single-aisle jets with wide-body aircraft comfort. The aircraft combine the latest trends in global aviation with Russia's experience in aerospace industry.

The first delivery is planned for the fourth quarter of 2018 within the framework of the Irkut Corporation's contract with the Aeroflot (Russian Airlines) PJSC. MS-21 which is also referred to as main plane of the 21st century is assembled and developed by the "Irkut" corporation.

Ilyushin Finance Company provides aircraft sale and lease services combining financial solutions with aircraft marketing and complete asset management, including aircraft customization and after sale support.

Azerbaijan Airlines is a major air carrier and one of the leaders of the aviation community of CIS countries. AZAL with the newest airplane fleets, consisting of 25 airplanes, does not have a single old plane.

Azerbaijan Airlines is a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

http://www.azernews.az/business/97734.html

 

[Azeri440]

meanwhile rapid expansion of SOCAR continues

SOCAR-Siemens project in Malta to be launched in late 2016

The first stage of gas & power generating project, implemented by SOCAR and Siemens in Malta, will be launched at the end of 2016.

Vagif Aliyev, the head of the Investment Department of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), there is a little delay with the construction company fabricating in Singapore a barge for liquefied gas, but the facility will be commissioned before the end of the year.

SOCAR trading house, SOCAR Trading, will be the exclusive supplier of liquefied natural gas for this project.

This project actually relates to the gasification of the island state, includes the construction of onshore regasification facilities and a new 210 MW combined-cycle power plant.

View attachment 308530

http://abc.az/eng/news/main/96509.html

SOCAR Office Tower officially opened

View attachment 308531

PETKIM

SOCAR eyes purchase of OMV assets in Turkey

Azerbaijan’s oil giant SOCAR will examine the issue of purchasing Turkey-based filling station network from Austria's OMV.

Zaur Gahramanov, General Manager of SOCAR Turkey Enerji Company talking to reporters mentioned that SOCAR displays a special interest in the assets of the company.

“OMV has not yet provided any information about the state of the assets to the market. The information was expected to be provided in June, but then the issue was delayed till September. We will thoroughly consider the issue as soon as the information is provided as we have a huge deal of interest in these assets. We are interested in the creation of distribution network pegged to the Star Petroleum refinery,” he said.

SOCAR president Rovnag Abdullayev previously confirmed the company’s interest in the purchase of the filling station assets of Austrian OMV in Turkey.

OMV previously spread the information about the intention to put up its OMV Petrol Ofisi A.S. subsidiary in Turkey for sale.

OMV sequentially sells its filling station networks located in different countries. Within the scope of its strategy the company is intended to be focused on the extractive enterprises as well as on the oil processing activities. In this regard OMV has launched the selling process of 100 percent of OMV Petrol Ofisi A.S which possesses one of the largest refueling station networks in Turkey. The company operates 1,785 refueling station throughout Turkey and owns the country’s largest fuel storage and logistics business.

In 2015 the volume of fuel sale amounted to 10 million tons.

With its headquarters in Vienna OMV is one of Austria’s largest industrial companies. The company is engaged in the upstream business which includes exploration and production as well as downstream which concerns refining, marketing as well as gas and power.

SOCAR is involved in exploring oil and gas fields, producing, processing, and transporting oil, gas, and gas condensate, as well as oil and chemical products in domestic and international markets, and supplying natural gas to the industry and the public in Azerbaijan.

http://www.azernews.az/oil_and_gas/97664.html

 

[Azeri440]

U.S.-Azerbaijan Open Skies Agreement Enters Into Force

The U.S. Departments of State, Transportation, and Commerce announce that on June 14, the United States and Azerbaijan completed an exchange of diplomatic notes that brought into force the U.S.-Azerbaijan Open Skies Agreement, which was signed on April 6, 2016.

This Open Skies Agreement, which liberalizes our bilateral aviation relationship, will facilitate trade and travel between the United States and Azerbaijan. The signing of this agreement was the result of more than three years of negotiations, led by the Department of State, with the Department of Transportation and the Department of Commerce.

The new Open Skies Agreement deepens commercial and economic ties between the United States and Azerbaijan. The agreement will benefit U.S. and Azerbaijani airlines, travelers, businesses, airports, and localities by allowing increased market access for passengers and cargo. By allowing air carriers to better meet increasing demand in both countries, the Open Skies Agreement will create opportunities for economic growth in sectors beyond aviation, including tourism and manufacturing.


http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2016/06/258455.htm

Hungary may finance segment of North-South railway corridor

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó and Azerbaijan’s Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev have signed in Baku an economic cooperation agreement which also includes the development of infrastructure along the 162 km missing section of North-South railway corridor, connecting Northern Europe with the Persian Gulf, in the vicinity of the Iran-Azerbaijan border. The cost of the project is estimated at approximately EUR 500 million.

“The Azerbaijani Government is open to allowing Hungarian enterprises to take part in the construction of this section of railway line if Hungary is prepared to financially contribute to the project”, Mr. Szijjártó said.

Eximbank has already begun negotiations on financing the railway line and on the inclusion of Hungarian enterprises. When the construction of the new line is completed it will make possible the transport of goods by rail directly from the Finnish capital Helsinki to the Persian Gulf.

http://www.think-railways.com/hungary-may-finance-segment-north-south-railway-corridor/

 

[Azeri440]

SOCAR CUTS OGPC CAPACITY, COSTS

Azerbaijan state oil company Socar has reduced the planned capacity of its projected gas processing and petrochemical plant known as OGPC to make it cheaper, a company senior official said. The total price of is now estimated at $4bn, Socar vice-president for financial Suleyman Gasimov told reporters in Baku late June.

"We are still considering construction of OGPC that includes gas processing and chemical plants at the first stage. However, for cost reduction we have made some adjustments in technical specifications. The capacity of the gas plant will be cut to 10bn m³/yr, down from the 12bn m³/yr planned earlier. So the total cost of the OGPC stage-1 is now estimated to be around $4bn,” said Gasimov, adding that more accurate figures will be obtained after the front-end engineering and design work is done. Earlier Socar had estimated the project would cost $7bn.

According to Gasimov, households in Azerbaijan are burning the expensive components of raw gas such as ethane, which could be extracted and used as resources for petrochemical products that are in high demand.

Gasimov said that the company is in talks with Chinese and Russian companies. Earlier talks with Japanese Mitsui led nowhere because of the high project cost and low prices for petrochemical products.

In early June Socar signed two MOU’s for OGPC, the first with China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and the second with Russia’s Gazprombank and Italian partners. "Currently we are evaluating proposals from CNPC and Russian and Italian partners. Considering that oil prices seems to be stabilizing the Japanese could be back on it too, they are still interested,” he said.


As it was reported earlier MOU signed between Socar and CNPC provisions cooperation in oil, gas and petrochemicals. According to Socar’s president Rovnag Abdullayev, CNPC shows interests on OGPC as partner and investor with providing funds through Chinese Ex-Im and other banks.

“The Chinese side said it was ready to provide 100% funds for OGPC”, said Gasimov.

The second MOU signed in Saint Petersburg proposes funding by Gazprombank, Russia’s export credit agency EXIAR and Italy’s credit agency SACE. Gazprombank owns several machinery companies that can provide the equipment for OGPC and their Italian partners, Technimont for instance, also want to be involved in the project, Gasimov explained.

GazPrombank estimated the investment required for OGPC at $3.5bn, based on a preliminary evaluation. It also considers that material, equipment and services provided by Russian companies will be around a fifth of the total budget, it said in a statement.

Socar sees its own gas production as the feedstock, including new fields such as the Umid gas and condensate field and an expected discovery in the Babek prospect, said Socar’s investment department head, Vagif Aliev.

He added that the company is “intensively working on projects” for developing the non-associated gas layer beneath the BP-operated Azer-Chirag-Guneshli oil fields and the first stage of development of Total’s Absheron discovery. “The associated gas that is now reinjected back into the reservoir to maintain oil production at ACG will be produced in the future too,” he added.

http://www.naturalgaseurope.com/socar-manages-an-ogpc-cost-down-30334

 

[Azeri440]

Joint production rate of An-178 in Azerbaijan will be set at 12 - 15 aircraft pet year

http://az.trend.az/business/economy/2553022.html

 

[Azeri440]

Azerbaijan and Eurabus GmbH will set up a joint production of Eurabus 2.0 Electric Buses for Azerbaijan's internal market and export to other countries.

http://www.trend.az/business/economy/2553617.html