Baku, Azerbaijan, April 24
By Ilaha Khalilova- Trend:
A meeting of Azerbaijani State Oil Fund (SOFAZ) supervisory board decided to recommend the fund's 2013 budget execution project for the approval by Azerbaijani President, according to a message from SOFAZ.
SOFAZ said on Thursday, April 24 that the supervisory board meeting chaired by Artur Rasizadeh, Azerbaijan's Prime Minister and the Supervisory Board's Chairman, discussed the fund's annual report and audited financial statements for 2013 and the report on execution of the 2013 budget.
"The supervisory board approved the SOFAZ's 2013 annual report and Auditor's (PricewaterhouseCoopers) Report as submitted by the executive director of the fund," according to the message from SOFAZ.
Prime Minister Artur Rasizadeh was re-elected the supervisory board's chairman-in-office for the next term.
SOFAZ was established in 1999, and at that time its assets were at $271 million.
SOFAZ assets increased by 5.1 percent as of January 1, 2014 compared to early 2013 ($ 34, 129.4 million), and amounted to $ 35 877.5 million.
The fund's 2013 revenues from hydrocarbon sales exceeded $16.7 billion.
SOFAZ revenues from profitable Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli oil and gas fields' block stood at $16.26 billion in 2013. The proven oil reserves are estimated at one billion tonnes.
Income from the sales of profit oil produced at Azerbaijan's other fields, developed as part of blocks, stood at $62.7 million.
SOFAZ also received $383.8 million in 2013 from the sales of profitable gas produced at the Shah Deniz gas and condensate field, developed by Azerbaijan's State Oil Company (SOCAR) jointly with foreign companies.
The proven gas reserves of the Shah Deniz field stand at 1.2 trillion cubic meters.
SOFAZ's additional incomes from the price difference during the sale of Azerbaijan's profit oil amounted to about 1.94 billion manats in 2013.
The average price of oil stood at $109.1 per barrel despite the fact that last year SOFAZ budgeted its oil price at $100 per barrel.
In turn, SOFAZ's net proceeds were conducted at the price of $101.1 per barrel.
SOFAZ's funds may be used for construction and reconstruction of strategically important infrastructure facilities as well as solving important national problems, according to the fund's rules.
In 2001-2009 a special attention was paid to the development of Azerbaijan's oil and the infrastructure sectors, as well as the non-oil sector.
Currently a number of strategically important projects in irrigation and transport areas are being financed with the fund's budget.
The main purposes of the fund are the accumulation of funds and placement of the fund's assets abroad to minimize the negative impact on the economy, preventing 'Dutch syndrome', to ensure savings for future generations and to maintain the current social and economic standards in the country.
The official exchange rate on April 24 is 0.7843 AZN/USD.
Translated by E.A.
Edited by C.N.