Azerbaijan, Baku, 22 August/ Trend , I. Khalilova/ In 2008, the Ministry of Taxes of Azerbaijan received AZN 1,784,000,000 as a advance payment of profit tax from the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC- operator of Azeri-Chiraq-Gunashli field) and its partners who fulfilled annual forecast, said Sahir Mammadkhanov, head of department for service of tax-payers with special tax regime of the Tax Ministry. These assignments exceeded the forecast by AZN 450,000,000.
These assignments include the advance payments for fourth quarter of last year as final payments are carried out until 25 April.
In the first quarter of 2008, AIOC assigned AZN 555,000,000 to the budget and AZN 498,900,000 in the second quarter. As a whole, about AZN 1, 296,900,000 (including advance for fourth quarter) was assigned to the budget.
In 2007, the tax assignments by AIOC were forecasted at AZN 1.5bln including the oil prices at $50 a barrel, but it exceeded AZN 2.5bln. It is caused by the double rise in oil prices and the average cost of all kinds of oil was at $82 to $85 in 2007 and at $105 in 2008.
The forecast on profit tax from AIOC are placed at AZN 1.55bln and expectation of the Ministry of Finance was at AZN 1.75bln to AZN 1.8bln. The drop in forecast for this year is connected with the changes from 2008 in the distribution of profit from the sale of oil between Azerbaijani government and foreign contractor companies from 30%/70% last year to 50%/50% at the beginning of this year and to 75%/25% as of 1 April.
Meanwhile, the world oil prices contribute to increase in the assignments to budget from the oil companies.
The change in the oil prices established by the government while developing budget forecast from $50 to $70 a barrel also contributed to the increase in the assignments. The oil companies will carry out tax assignments to the budget in second and third quarter of the year in accordance with this established price and assignments for the fourth quarter will be carried in next year.
The correspondent can be contacted at: [email protected]