SOCAR's investments in Turkey to exceed $18 billion

By Nuran Erkul

ANKARA (AA) - When Azerbaijan state oil company SOCAR's $18 billion investments in Turkey are made in multiple projects, Turkey's status will grow as a regional and global provider of energy security, SOCAR's president said on Thursday.

Speaking exclusively to Anadolu Agency, Rovnaq Abdullayev, SOCAR's president, stated that when the company's investments in Turkey are completed, they will contribute much to help Turkey reduce energy imports and its current deficit.

"We are happy with this contribution, and our cooperation with Turkey will grow further and the chain of investments in Turkey is proof of our trust in the Turkish economy," Abdullayev noted.

For one of the company's biggest investments in Turkey, the STAR Refinery -Turkey's first private sector refinery - $3.7 billion has been spent so far and 80 percent of the project is complete.

"We foresee that STAR will be operational by 2018," he emphasized.

- $4 billion external financing for TANAP

Abdullayev said that works on the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Project (TANAP), in which SOCAR has a majority share, are ongoing while the company is still in negotiations with international banks for external financing for the project.

"Although it is not definite yet, we predict that around $4 billion in support will be created for TANAP," he announced.

Negotiations are being carried out with the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB), European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Abdullayev also said that 8 percent of the Southern Gas Corridor Company's 58 percent share in the TANAP project will be transferred to SOCAR Turkey.

"We started the necessary works for our shareholders, and we expect that this transfer will be formalized soon," he said.

- Azerbaijan to be important supplier for Europe

SOCAR, as a significant player of a $45 billion gas value chain including the Southern Gas Corridor, aims to become a new and reliable natural gas supplier for Europe, Abdullayev said.

"Our project [TANAP] will firstly carry 16 billion cubic meters of natural gas in the beginning. Then this amount can increase to 31 billion cubic meters depending on our production capacity," he said.

He added that gas deliveries to Turkey will start in mid-2018 and at the beginning of 2020 for Europe.

"With these investments, Azerbaijan will be Turkey's second-biggest and one of Europe's important gas suppliers in the mid to long term. This will benefit both producers, carriers and consumers," Abdullayev underlined.