Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 10
By Emin Aliyev - Trend:
Phase I of the Baku shipyard was built at a cost of $470 million, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Investment Company (AIC), Rovshan Najaf said in an interview with 'The Business Year' journal.
"The jewel in the crown for AIC though was the Baku Shipyard Company LLC, a new 62-hectare shipyard that is jointly owned and developed by the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) AIC, and Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd. (Keppel O&M), a Singapore-based world leader in the maritime industry. It was inaugurated by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, on September 20, 2013. The new yard is designed to undertake construction of a wide range of specialized vessels and merchant ships, including subsea vessels, anchor handling tug/supply vessels, and multi-purpose offshore support vessels such as platform supply vessels, as well as tankers and cargo vessels," Rovshan Najaf said, "The yard also has ship repair and conversion capabilities. Although Keppel O&M owns just 10 percent of the yard, it has full responsibility for management and operation. The largest shareholder, at 65 percent, is SOCAR, followed by AIC, which owns 25 percent equity in the company".
When operating at full capacity, the shipyard is able to undertake up to 100 repairs and conversions per annum, AIC executive director said.
The plans for Phase II include the construction of a graving dock with added facilities for offshore projects.
"With highly skilled human resources, world-class expertise and know-how, as well as well-structured capital investments, we will not have to wait too long to see the shipyard becoming a globally recognized center of excellence in shipbuilding, repair, and conversion. Baku Shipyard Company LLC will be serving not only local demand in Azerbaijan, but also that of the littoral countries of the Caspian basin, as well becoming an important production hub for maritime industries in the region," Rovshan Najaf noted.