SOCAR intends to suspend production of AI-95 gasoline
The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) has appealed to the government with a proposal to suspend the production of AI-95 gasoline and fully switch to the production of A-92 gasoline, the head of SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev said.
He said the AI-95 gasoline is supposed to be imported while AI-98 gasoline is already being imported into the country from abroad. Abdullayev said these measures are supposed to meet the growing demand for gasoline in Azerbaijan.
Currently, the capacities of oil refineries in Azerbaijan no longer cope with the growing volume of gasoline consumption in the country. That is why, SOCAR appealed to the government with a proposal to conduct a full transition to the production of AI-92 gasoline. AI-95 and AI-98 gasoline will be imported by companies engaged in retail sales of gasoline in the country.
Agreement on transportation of Azerbaijani oil via Baku-Novorossiysk can be prolonged
SOCAR applied to the Russian "Transneft" for prolonging the transit agreement about transportation of oil via the Baku-Novorossiysk oil pipeline, ITAR-TASS said with reference to the source in the company.
Prices for fuels and lubricants not to increase in first quarter of 2014
The prices for fuels and lubricants in Kazakhstan will not increase in the first quarter of 2014, chairman of the Kazakh Agency for Regulation of Natural Monopolies, Murat Ospanov said.
"In case of unreasonable increase in prices for fuels and lubricants at the gas stations, measures will be taken, which will even include fines exceeding one million tenges [about $7000]. More stringent measures will be taken if such facts will be repeated by legal entities or individuals," he said.
In turn, Kazakh Oil and Gas Minister Uzakbai Karabalin said the ministry will maintain the situation regarding the petroleum products' prices under the control.
"In the first quarter we will keep prices for fuels and lubricants. All our oil refineries are working, and they will deliver all products to the domestic market. The export of petroleum products is prohibited. Moreover, as I said before, we have the reserves of oil products in storehouses for one and a half month," Karabalin said.
Talks about the increase of costs on fuels and lubricants in Kazakhstan started after the devaluation of the national currency conducted on Feb. 11.
Italian Eni to expand participation in Turkmenistan's oil and gas market
Eni's CEO, Paolo Scaroni has met with the President of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov in Ashgabat to discuss Eni's activities in the Caspian Sea, the company said.
During the meeting, they also discussed the possibility of prolonging Eni's activities in the country by extending the length of its onshore concessions and possible participation in gas processing, the company said.