April 14
International Bank of Azerbaijan raises Dual Currency Syndicated Term Loan Facility
International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) has signed a syndicated loan agreement worth $ 160 million with tranches worth $ 48 million and 81 million euros for a period of one year.
International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) mandated Amsterdam Trade Bank N.V., Citibank, N.A., London (Citi), Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft (Commerzbank), ING Bank N.V., J.P. Morgan Limited and Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI). Citi was appointed as Coordinator for the Facility.
Iran ready to open Aslanduz-Horadiz border crossing point
The Iranian side is ready to open the Aslanduz-Horadiz border crossing point on the Azerbaijani-Iranian border, according to Iran's Ambassador to Azerbaijan Mohsen Pak Ayeen.
The ambassador said that the Iranian side has prepared infrastructure for opening the border crossing point.
He stressed that the opening of the Aslanduz-Horadiz border crossing point is beneficial for both sides.
"We hope that Azerbaijan in turn will also launch works on opening the border crossing point on its side," the diplomat added.
Azerbaijan, Korea sign loan agreement for water purification unit construction
The Azerbaijani government and the Export-Import Bank of Korea signed a loan agreement for the construction of the water purification unit in the Baku settlement of Pirshagi, Azersu national water operator said.
Eximbank will provide Azerbaijan with a loan worth $43.5 million for the construction of a water purification unit with a capacity of 40,000 cubic meters. These funds are granted for 40 years with a grace period of 10 years and an annual rate of 0.2 percent, according to the agreement.
April 15
Azerbaijan builds new railway crossing via Kura River
Azerbaijan Railways started laying a railroad through the second bridge across the Kura River, located on the Salahli-Poylu section, the company said.
"The work on this section started on April 15 and some 400 meters of the railway were laid," the company said.
It is necessary to construct the second railway crossing on a specified section through Kura to ensure uninterrupted cargo transportation in the direction of Baku-Boyuk Kesik.
The bridge was constructed in 2014. Its length is 208.44 meters.
SOCAR experience promotes strengthening Europe's energy security
SOCAR has international experience and practice in the implementation of large projects that can contribute to achieving common European objectives in the field of energy.
SOCAR head Rovnag Abdullayev made this statement during a visit to Romania at the invitation of Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta, according to the website of SOCAR office in Romania.
"Europe is facing many challenges in diversifying the sources of supply," he said. "This is important for energy security, which helps to maintain the competitiveness of industry , economy and infrastructure."
April 16
Bulgaria to supply gas from Azerbaijan very soon
The construction of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria gas pipeline will start in 2015, the Azerbaijani Minister of Energy Natig Aliyev said at a meeting with Bulgaria's Economy and Energy Minister Dragomir Stoynev.
"A billion cubic meters of gas from Azerbaijan, on the supply of which we have signed an agreement in September 2013, will be supplied via the interconnector with Greece, and the technical design of the pipeline is to be prepared this year. By the end of April we will start to solve the problems of financing the project, and several banks have already expressed the preliminary desire to participate in it. And the construction of a direct interconnector will begin next year," Stoynev said.
The bilateral relations between Bulgaria and Azerbaijan reach the level of strategic partnership, Aliyev said.
ADB presents loan agreement on road project to Azerbaijan
The Asian Development Bank has submitted a loan agreement on bridge reconstruction project on the 'Agstafa-Poylu-Georgian border' highway to the Azerbaijani government, ADB office said.
ADB Board of Directors approved allocating a loan worth $ 45 million for the construction of four bridges (one railway overpass and three bridges across the river), reconstruction of local roads in the city of Ganja (365 kilometers west of Baku) in March.
April 17
Azerbaijan, Turkey to create Eurasian Agricultural Council
Azerbaijan and Turkey will create Eurasian Agricultural Council.
This decision was taken after signing a cooperation agreement by Azerbaijani National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) and Turkish Agriculture and Food Industry Confederation.
The council will be created to extend Azerbaijan's and Turkey's joint activity in agriculture, food industry and other fields to the Eurasian region's countries.
Montenegro interested in developing relations in field of investments with Azerbaijan
Montenegro is interested in development of relations with Azerbaijan in various spheres of the economy, in particular in the field of investment, chairman of the Montenegrin Parliament, OSCE PA president Ranko Krivokapic said at a meeting with Azerbaijani Minister of Economy and Industry Shahin Mustafayev in Baku.
An Azerbaijani delegation visited Montenegro in March 2014. The first meeting of the joint intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation, meetings and a business forum were held there.
"The memorandum of understanding on the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project, signed last year is an excellent opportunity for cooperation between Azerbaijan and Montenegro in the energy sector," Mustafayev said. "At this stage, several investment projects are being considered. Their successful implementation will serve the development of relations between the two countries. There is great potential for expanding the cooperation in the fields of agriculture, tourism, infrastructure and investments."
KfW changes working concept of Credit Guarantee Fund in Azerbaijan
German KfW Development Bank has changed the working concept of the Credit Guarantee Fund in Azerbaijan, the activity of which was suspended in early 2012.
"The new conception of CGF has been agreed on with the Ministry of Economy and Industry of Azerbaijan, and in order to obtain an approval, an application was submitted to the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development," the KfW Baku office said.
The CGF's main condition was the usage of attracted funds from foreign banks directed to the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises on German-Azerbaijani Fund`s business scheme, or the banks had to generate the same amount of portfolio allocated to this sector.
In accordance with the new concept, the guarantee will be provided to the end recipient of the loan from local banks, which means the borrowing from foreign banks is not considered. Loan guarantee is provided in the case of force majeure in agriculture.
April 18
Caspian energy reserves and natural gas transportation must be diversified
It is important to diversify the ways of supplying energy resources and particularly natural gas from the Caspian Sea to ensure the energy security of the European allies of the U.S., U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said at the broad political forum "Changing landscape of natural gas".
He was discussing the strategic importance of the Caspian Sea and Azerbaijan in ensuring energy security.
"The U.S. government supports energy projects that serve this purpose," Moniz said.
While delivering speech on "Changing energy security in the Trans-European and Eurasian region", Azerbaijani Ambassador to the U.S. Elin Suleymanov spoke about Azerbaijan's energy diplomacy, being a reliable partner in the energy market.
Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan discuss oil and gas cooperation
The president of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), Rovnag Abdullayev, who is on a visit to Turkmenistan, discussed the development of cooperation of the two countries in the oil and gas sphere, a message from Turkmen government said.
April 19
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Julia Nesheiwat visits Azerbaijan
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) of State for Implementation in the Bureau of Energy Resources Julia Nesheiwat visited Azerbaijan this weekend to discuss Azerbaijan's progress in developing its renewable energy sector and identify potential areas for cooperation.