The Azerbaijan State Oil Company (SOCAR) finalised a deal on the purchase of the oil terminal in Kulevi (near Poti Port). Rovnag Abdullayev, the SOCAR President, made this statement during his televised speech for the Georgian television Rustavi 2, Trend Correspondent in Georgia reports.
Badri Patarkatzishvili, a Georgian businessman, sold the unbuilt oil terminal in Kulevi Port. He raised $150mln for the construction work.
The authorities have refused for the terminal to be a central oil transit junction and made a resolution on the development of an oil terminal in Batumi and a free trade zone in Poti. This was the major reason Patarkatzishvili decide to sell the terminal.
Previously Terminal 2000 Limited, which was founded by the Georgian Railway and Austrian company, Agromar Oil, was involved in the construction of the terminal.
In 2002 the construction was suspended due to lack of finance and in 2004 Patarkatzishvili took over the construction. He was in talks with the then Prime Minister, Zurab Zhivania.
From Spring 2007, SOCAR will set up the delivery of the Azerbaijani oil that enters Kulevi via rail. The port will accept tankers with a capacity of 150 tons. In the initial stage the new owner of the terminal will deliver up to 10mln tons of oil a year with an increase to 35mln tons.