Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 27 / Trend V. Zhavoronkova/
Production at oil refinary of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), construction of which is planned in Kyrgyzstan, is expected to meet the country's demand for oil products, Kyrgyz Oil Traders Association head Jumakadyr Akeneev told Trend on Monday.
The agreement on the construction of the oil refinery was reached on Jan.19 at a meeting of the President of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev and SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev. The oil refinery is scheduled to be commissioned in late 2013.
Akeneev said the plant will process about two million tons of oil per year.
"This is pretty large-scale oil refinery for Kyrgyzstan," he told Trend over phone on Monday.
Akeneev added that a working group from Azerbaijan will visit Kyrgyzstan in March to decide the place for the refinery's building.
The oil refinery will process oil from Azerbaijan, which will be transported to Kyrgyzstan via the Caspian Sea and then by railroad either through Kazakhstan or via China-Iran railway, if it is commissioned, he added.
The minimum cost of the oil refinery, which SOCAR plans to build in Kyrgyzstan, hits $100 million.
SOCAR includes the Azneft production association (the companies producing oil and gas on and offshore), the Azerkimya industrial association (chemical enterprises) and Azerigaz industrial association (gas distribution).
SOCAR is the only producer of oil products in the country (it has two refineries on its balance sheet) and also owns petrol stations in Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Ukraine. SOCAR is co-owner of the largest Turkish petrochemical complex Petkim. The company carries out oil trade in various regions of the world through SOCAR Trading.