No need to increase customs duties on car imports into Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 10 / Trend N.Ismayilova /

Azerbaijani State Customs Committee head Aydin Aliyev said there is no need to raise customs duties on car imports to protect domestic motor vehicle production.

"If a few years ago we imported over 90,000 cars into the country per year, the figure was only 42,000 since early 2010," Aliyev said today. "The import volumes are virtually the same as last year."

Car imports increased by 1.1 percent compared to January-October 2009, so it is too early to raise the issue of protecting the domestic market, he said.

As reported earlier car import from the CIS countries reduced by half during the year due to the application of environmental Euro-2 standards [July 1, 2010] to motor vehicles in Azerbaijan.

The environmental standards Euro-2 introduced from July 1, 2010 is applied to imported cars. These standards will not apply to used cars in the country.

The new standards include two lines of the Euro-2 to motor vehicles:

- Relatively new cars imported to Azerbaijan. If the car model is brought into the country for the first time, it should pass procedures to determine the type for compliance with emission standards. In the subsequent importation of vehicles of the same brand examination will not be required;

- Examination of the already exploited cars on their compliance with emissions standards Euro-2.

Cars, which were manufactured after 1996 (with appear of the Euro-2), imported to Azerbaijan will be checked for compliance with the emission data specified in the datasheet. Import of these cars is possible after the implementation of technical work in the engine.

When importing new models, data about them will be included into a special database. After that, all cars of this model, not commissioned previously, will be imported to the country without being checked for compliance with Euro-2.

These conditions do not apply to vintage cars and vehicles that are already in operation.

Cars imported to Azerbaijan after July 1, 2010, will undergo an additional annual inspection, along with the annual mandatory. Cars that were imported into the country until July 1 will pass annual traditional inspection.

Earlier SOCAR head Rovnag Abdullayev said gasoline produced at SOCAR's refineries meet Euro-2 standards and even exceeds them in quality. SOCAR is working to improve the quality of the fuel to Euro-3 standards.

SOCAR intends to build a new facility, which will include new oil refinery, gas processing and petrochemical production, for the production of petroleum products that meet Euro-5 and above.

Currently, the only producer of oil in the country, in particular, gasoline and diesel fuel, is SOCAR. Previously SOCAR president Rovnag Abdullayev said that domestically produced gasoline and diesel fuel fully consistent with Euro-2.

SOCAR plans to improve the quality of produced fuel up to Euro-3 standard modernizing refineries.

SOCAR intends to build a new complex, which will include new oil refinery, gas processing and petrochemical production to produce oil products in accordance with Euro-5 standards.