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SOCAR says change of gasoline price in Azerbaijan not on agenda

Oil&Gas Materials 14 September 2015 12:57 (UTC +04:00)
Changing the gasoline prices in Azerbaijan is not on the agenda.
SOCAR says change of gasoline price in Azerbaijan not on agenda

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.14

By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:

Changing the gasoline prices in Azerbaijan is not on the agenda, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) Rovnag Abdullayev told reporters Sept.14.

The gasoline prices in Azerbaijan have been set based on oil prices of $60-$62 per barrel for a long time, according to the company's president.

The prices for the AI-92 gasoline produced in Azerbaijan are neither affected, nor tied to oil prices in world markets, he said.

"Meanwhile, the prices for the domestically produced gasoline are regulated by Azerbaijan's Tariff Council," Abdullayev added.

SOCAR's president pointed out the difference in tariffs for AI-95 and AI-98 gasoline brands which are imported from abroad and the prices for which are controlled by the market.

However, the demand for them is so little that the gasoline imported a year and a half ago hasn't been sold out yet, he added.

"When we were producing AI-95 gasoline in the country, the volume of its sales was 150,000 tons per year. But when we started to import it from abroad, the population began to use a cheaper AI-92 gasoline," said Abdullayev.

"Thereby, the sales volume of AI-95 gasoline dropped by six times and stood at 25,000 tons per year," he added. "However, even these volumes imported seven months ago haven't been completely sold so far."

SOCAR's president said that the decrease in oil prices in the world market can affect the prices for AI-95 and AI-98 gasoline brands only.

"It is an open market with several companies competing with each other. Therefore, the prices can drop due to the competition," he said.

However, once the oil prices rise, the prices for these gasoline brands will also increase, according to Abdullayev.

"The price for AI-92 gasoline is stable and has been approved by the Tariff Council," he said. "No changes are expected in the prices for this gasoline brand."

SOCAR is the sole producer of oil products in Azerbaijan. It has two oil refineries and filling stations in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Romania and Switzerland. The company is the co-owner of the largest Turkish petrochemical complex, Petkim, and other assets in Turkey.

Edited by SI

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Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov

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