THE INTERNATIONAL CONSORTIUM HAS SPENT $150 MM FOR THE DELAY IN CARRYING OUT OF THE PROJECT KASHAGAN
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The international consortium headed by the Italian ENI will pay out $150 MM to Kazakhstan as penalty for delay of the program of development of the large field Kashagan. The Ministry of Finances of Kazakhstan Mr. Erbolat Dosayev has said. The payment will carried out by two tranches : $100 MM and $50 MM, - the minister has said, however he has not determined the date of payment.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: During the phone conversation the Presidents of Ukraine and Turkmenistan have agreed to meet in Ashgabad in the beginning of May for 25 years deal on start of deliveries of the Turkmen gas to Ukraine since 2007.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The Russian Oil Company "LUKoil" renews the business in Iraq. It will be the largest fuel supplier for this country instead of scandal Halliburton, which as it has turned out sold oil for twice higher price than the other suppliers. Now the Ministry of Defense of the USA conducts criminal investigation against Halliburton.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The World Wild Nature Fund (WWF) is the largest nature protecting organization has concluded that the projects of all oil companies operating in Russia threaten to the most valuable ecological systems of the country. Today the ecologists present the project of the Ecological Code: requirements worked out jointly with "Greenpeace" and movements "Ecoyuris" and "Ecozashita" for public consideration of oil experts and officials.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The OPEC will not change the decision of the conference in Algeria and reduce the total quotas for production and export of crude oil by 1MM bbl since April 1.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The Iranian National Company of the Oil-Bulk Fleet has received the tanker "Iran - Demavend" with deadweight of 300 thou tons, the agency Iran Mania informs. The tanker has delivered its first cargo - crude oil to the port of Rotterdam by the order of the French Company Total.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The President of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev will discuss the situation and perspectives of bilateral cooperation in Uzbekistan on March 24.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The dry cargo carrier "river-sea" built by the order of the Turish Company "Palmali" has been launched on the Volgograd Ship Making Plant. The ship, which should operate in the Black, Caspian and Mediterranean Seas has received the name of the President of Azerbaijan Geydar Aliyev.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The volume of the GDP of Azerbaijan made 5.296 trln manats for two months of 2004 and this is by 10.2% more than for the analogous period of the past year.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: An average salary in Azerbaijan for two months of the current year made 438.1 thou manats. In comparison with the analogous period of 2003 this rate has grown by 20.3%.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: For completion of the preparation of the project "Pensions and Social Protection of the population of Azerbaijan" and determination of credit volume for its realization the mission of the WB arrives in Baku on March 25.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: The car concern Volkswagen has given agreement for reconstruction car in Gyanja, the Director of Gyanja enterprise Mr. Musa Abdullayev has informed by the results of negotiations held recently with the officials of the concern.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS. he cooperation in the safety fields is one of main issue of the sitting of the national coordinators of GUUAM, which has opened on March 22 in Baku.
BAKU.22.03.2004.MEDIA-PRESS: In the first decade of April the third Azerbaijan international tourism exhibition "AITF 2004" will be held in Baku. The International Exhibition Company ITE Group PLC (The Great Britain) and its partner Iteca Caspian Ltd. have organized it.
The means will be accumulated in "The Fund of Future Generations", which made $3.692 bn by March 15.
Royal Dutch/Shell, Total, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and Inpex join into the consortium of the operators of Kashagan. They have invested already $2bn to the fields. However the first stage of the development may cost $10 bn by the opinion of the analysts and all development - $29 bn, the agency Reuters informs from Astana.
TURKMENISTAN AND UKRAINE PREPARED 25 YEARS GAS DEAL BY THE BEGINNING OF MAY
As the agency "Turkmen Khabarlari" has informed, Mr. Leonid Kucham and Saparmurad Niyazov have agreed that "during the visit the Heads of Turkmenistan and Ukraine will sign this document after complete agreement of long term interstate treaty on the Turkmen natural gas deliveries; today experts of both the countries are working on this document in accordance with order of the heads of the states".
The relevant agreement between states expires in 2006. Now Kiev purchases 30 - 35 bn cubic meters of gas annually by a price $44 for 1000 cubic meters, paying out for a half of the deal by goods and execution of works in Turkmenistan.
The signing of the new contract as it has been said in the information "Turkmen Habarllari" is signed for the beginning of May within frameworks of the official visit of Mr. Kuchma to Ashgabad. The deal was postponed two times and in the last time for consultation with Russian and Kazakhstan on conditions of transit.
Turkmenistan is the second gas exporter in the CIS after Russia - it delivers main volumes of natural crude by the gas pipeline Central Asia - Center, which has limited capacity - about 50 bn cubic meters of gas annually.
Ashgabad hopes to increase the export due to the reconstruction of the existing main line and construction of the new gas pipeline along the Caspian Sea, in necessity of which Ashgabad persuades actively Moscow and Kiev. On April of 2003 the Turkmen side has signed 25 years agreement with the Russian "Gazprom" providing the sharp increase of the deliveries to Russia since 2007.
''LUKOIL" BECOMES ONE OF THE LARGEST FUEL SUPPLIER FOR IRAQ INSTEAD OF THE SCANDAL AMERICAN HALLIBURTON
The branch of the Russian Company LITASCO signed the contract with the American Refinery Associates Texas, which won the large tender on deliveries of fuel. The Russian side will carry out all operations connected with the logistics, goods and finance ensuring of the deliveries. For three months of the contract acting (since April 1) LITASCO should deliver 180 thou tons of benzene and 130 thou of the diesel fuel, "Vedomosty" inform. Then the contract may be prolonged.
Pentagon chose a replacement for scandal supplier on the tender, results of which were announced on March 8. Six Turkish companies and American Reinery Associates won. This company got the largest contract by 108.5 MM dollars. Usually the Americans do not engage in deliveries to Iraq themselves and hire subcontractors. And LITASCO became a subcontractor in this case.
By estimation of "Vedomosty" a share of LITASCO makes 40 - 45% of all deliveries of the oil products to Iraq (including and the civil needs), carried out for the American money. The officials of the company hope that the contract will be prolonged in three months and this term is explained by every quarter financing of the Iraq program by the US Congress.
THE PROJECTS OF ALL OIL COMPANIES WORKING IN RUSSIA THREATEN TO THE MOST VALUABLE ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS OF THE COUNTY, THE WORLD WILD NATURE FUND CONFIRMS
The project introduces a presumption of potential ecological danger of operation of companies, makes them liable to refusing of operations "on the territories and water areas of high natural protection value" and not to lobby changes in the Russian laws, which may weaken the ecological requirements. At the development of new projects the companies, which signed the code would be liable to estimate not only their profits, but the use, which would be brought by them in a case of realization of their plans.
As the coordinator of oil programs WWF Mrs. Tatyana Serikh has explained, the goal of the Code is not to remind simply the oil workers about the necessity of keeping regulations, but also compensation of lacks of laws, which are used by them to date. Particularly, the code makes the company liable to develop the plan of prevention and removal of oil pollutions, insure risks of pollution and oil leakages at independent insurants and create proper reserves in a case of emergency.
The ecologist sent sent their suggestions to all oil companies, working in Russia still on February 20. However only "YKOS" ,"Transneft", TNK-BP and Sakhalin Energy agreed to take part in discussions. "Rosnet" sent a letter to WWF, where it calls the code acceptance purposeless as it repeats requirements of the present laws. ExxonMobil by the words of the Natural Protection Director of WWF Mr Evgeni Swarts, does not communicate with "green" principally. "LUKoil" even could not confirm the reception of the project.
THE OPEC WILL NOT CHANGE THE DECISION OF THE ALGERIAN CONFERENCE AND REDUCE QUOTAS ON PRODUCTION AND EXPORT OF OIL - THE PRESIDENT OF THE OPEC HAS SAID
The President of the OPEC, who executes duties of the General Secretary of the world oil cartel at the same time Mr. Purnomo Yusgiantoro has said this. By the words of the Chief of the OPEC, "the present extremely highest prices for oil have not been caused by the fundamental reasons that are by lack of export of crude oil to the international energy markets". "Non-stability of oil situation in Iraq and Venezuela are main reasons of the present state on the markets", - he has said.
As Mr. Purnomo Yusgiantoro has emphasized, by the predictions of the experts of the OPEC, in the second quarter of the current year 10 countries-members of the cartel will export no higher 24.76 MM bbl of oil daily.
By calculations for February the total oil volumes exported by the OPEC countries including the 11th country Iraq made 28.14 MM bbl daily and this is more by almost 2 MM bbl than it quotas allocated on the 129th Algerian conference determined.
The new oil quotas policy will be developed on the next conference of the Ministries of the cartel, which will be held in Vienna on March 31 with a participation of officials of countries-observers including
Russia.
The Saudi Arabia, Ian, Venezuela, the United Arabian Emirates, Nigeria, Iraq, Algeria, Kuwait, Indonesia, Libya and Qatar enter into the OPEC.
THE TOTAL DEADWEIGHT OF THE OIL-BULK FLEET OF THE IRI HAS INCREASED BY 600 THOU TONS
As the Director of the Department of Planning of the Iranian National Company of Oil-Bulk Fleet Mr. Taakol has informed, the tanker built on the Chinese dockyard in Dalyan, is equipped by the modern equipment and corresponds to the international safety navigation standards and limitations on entering the ports with oil terminals do not touch it.
By the words of Mr. Taakol, since September of the past year the countries-importers in Europe and America introduced the forbid for entering of their oil tankers with single coated bodies to their ports. The Iranian tankers have double coat and are equipped by all necessary devices and so the limitations on entering the international ports do not touch them.
On August of the past year the Iranian National Company of oil-bulk fleet has received else one oil-bulk tanker with the deadweight of 300 thou tons - "Iran - Kherselin" built in the South Corea. Thus the total deadweight of the ships of the oil-bulk fleet of Iran has increased by 600 thou tons.
ON MARCH 24 THE PRESIDENT OF AZERBAIJAN WILL VISIT UZBEKISTAN WITH THE OFFICIAL VISIT
As it has been informed by the press-service of the MFA of Uzbekistan, as well the discussion of the actual international problems, geopolitical situation in the South Caucasus regions and Central Asia, bilateral and multisided cooperation within frameworks of the international organizations have been planned during the visit.
The program of the visit provides for meeting of the Presidents face to face; then negotiations in enlarged content will be held. By their results the sides will sign the declaration on the further strengthening of the strategic partnership between two states, consul convention, intergovernmental agreement on the scientific-technical cooperation and a number of other documents.
As Media-Press has informed earlier, during visit of the President of Azerbaijan, besides of the official negotiations, the ceremony of opening of new buildings of the Embassy of Azerbaijan and Cultural Center of the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Friendship will be held; and in front of the Center building the monument of the President of Azerbaijan Mr. Geydar Aliyev will be put. As well one of the streets of Tashkent will be called under the name of him.
Moreover, just these days the monument to the great Azerbaijan poet and philosopher Mr. Nizami Gyanjevi will be opened in the Uzbek capital. It will be established in front of the University, which carries his name.
THE NEW TURKISH DRY CARGO CARRIER HAS RECEIVED THE NAME OF GEYDAR ALIYEV
As the Director of the Volgograd Ship Making Plant Mr. Alexey Litra has said, the Odessa Central Constructor Office has projected the ship with deadweight by 6.9 thou tons and a length of 140 m. The dry cargo carrier is accounted for transportation of friable cargos, grain, woods, mineral fertilizers, special containers of the international standard and as well as cargos of the highest danger. It has double coat and this corresponds to requirements of the Marine Convention, which entered into a force in the past year. Having improved maneuverability the ship is capable to turn by 350 degrees on one place practically.
This is the first ship built for the Turkish company in accordance with the contract on construction of six dry cargo carriers and five oil-bulk self-movable barges up to 2007. The cost of the contract signed on March 2003, made above $40 MM. At the present time construction of else two dry cargo carriers is completed on shipyard of the Volgograd Ship Making Plant and they will be transferred to consumer on May.
FOR TWO MONTHS OF 2004 THE GDP OF AZERBAIJAN HAS EXCEEDED 5 TRLN MANATS
Within frameworks of the GDP structure a share of the production made 55.6%, services field - 37.8%. The production of the GDP per capita made 659.7 thou manats in the current year.
We shall note that in accordance with results of the past year, the GDP of Azerbaijan made 35.1 trln manats and 4.3 MM manats per capita. In 2004, as it is expected, the GDP volume will make 37.3 trln manats.
In accordance with the state program of the social-economical development of regions of Azerbaijan for 2004 - 2008 the volume of the GDP will make 76.3 trln manats by the end of this period and increase in 2.3 times in comparison with 2003. The production of the GDP per capita will make $1.578 thou, a share of the private sector within the frameworks of the GDP will grow up to 85%.
AN AVERAGE SALARY IN AZERBAIJAN MADE 438.1 THOU MANATS
The number of the able-bodied population in Azerbaijan makes 3.8 MM persons to date, and 54.7 thou persons of them have official unemployed status.
In 2003 an average salary in Azerbainan made 383.1 thou manats 383.1 thou manats; and in 2002 it has made 315.2 thou manats.
By data of the State Statistic Committee of the country, high level of salary is kept as before in the producing industry, construction, as well as commercial and financing spheres. The lowest volume of salary has been registered in fishery, agriculture, health and social spheres.
In accordance with the Edict of the President of Azerbaijan dated from August 4, 2003 the volume of the minimum salary in the country was increased since September 1 from 27.5 thou manats up to 45 thou manats and up to 60 thou manats in 2004.
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THE PREPARATION OF THE PROJECT "PENSIONS AND SOCIAL PROTECTION OF THE POPULATION OF AZERBAIJAN" COMPLETES
As it Media-Press has been informed in the Baku presentation of the WB, it is expected that the given project will be approved up to the end of June. By preliminary information, $10 MM should be allocated supposedly for its realization. Moreover, the officials of the WB have noted that this total may change in the process of discussions with the Azerbaijan side.
The State Social Protection Fund will spend the part of the WB credit for conduction of the pension reform and a part of the credit will be transferred to accounts of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the population.
Introduction of private account cards for each working person and creating of the computer database, where all information about labor activity of each person, the service length, monthly payments to the Social Protection Fund will be kept is one of components of the project. Such base will simplify significantly the procedure of pensions registration. Pensioner should only appeal to the Pension Fund and not spend a time for getting a lot of inquiries. The volume of pension will be calculated depending on the total transferred to the Social Protection Fund during all service length. The Social Protection Fund will realize this component of the project. And the Ministry of Labor should be carrying out the work on improvement of social payments addresseness.
We shall note that in this finance year, which completes on June 30, the WB intends to allocate $50 - $70 fMM to Azerbaijan. Besides of the project "Pensions and Social Protection of the Population", credits will be allocated for the realization of the projects "Investments to agricultural communities" and "The Development of Market Relations".
VOLKSWAGEN INTENDS TO PRODUCE CARS IN AZERBAIJAN
By his words, Volkswagen has not determined for the present, what models the plant will produce and as well as whether this will be mounting or the production of full value.
At the present time the officials of the concern study the sale market and opportunities of the plant for taking the final decision, Mr. Abdullayev has noted.
The construction of the car plant in Gyanja started in 80-s, however for finance difficulties and as well for collapse of the USSR it has not been completed.
THE NATIONAL COORDINATORS OF GUUAM DISCUSS ISSUES OF SAFETY OF TRANSPORT ROUTES IN BAKU
During two days the experts of Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Moldova joining into this regional foundation will discuss the issues of ensuring the safety and efficiency of the regional cargo traffics including within frameworks of the Euro-Asian transport corridor TRACECA as well as cooperation with the USA and a number of other countries in this issue.
The participants of the meeting will consider as well the course of the realization of the regional projects and issues of the institutional development of GUUAM.
ON APRIL THE THIRD AZERBAIJAN INTERNATIONAL TOURISM EXHIBITION AITF 2004 WILL BE HELD IN BAKU
By the opinion of the organizers, Azerbaijan has all necessary for intensive development of tourism. Above 6 thou historical-architectural monuments are situated on the territory of the country and major number of them is situated on routes of the Great Silk Way.
As well favorable climate promotes to the development of the tourism - a number of solar days in a year makes 284 and 9 zones of 11 climate ones on the territory of Azerbaijan are available on the territory of Azerbaijan. 13 natural and historical national parks, 17 preserves and hunting economies have been founded in the country; there are above 250 lakes, 1200 large and small rivers.
As well the international communication is developed - planes of the State concern "The Azerbaijan airlines" carry out flights to Germany, India, France, Egypt, Great Britain, Turkey, China and other countries.
It is expected that 9 thou officials of the tourist business will visit to the present exhibition from Turkey, Iran, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and countries of the Central Asia. And 70 companies from 15 countries will become direct participants of the exposition.
The past year tourist companies from Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Austria, Italy, France take part in the analogous exhibition and presented their achievements in such spheres of the tourist business as active and adventure resort, cruises, educational tourism, business tours organization, treatment and health tourism.
The exhibition has been organized under a support of the World Tourist Organization, the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Tourism, the Union of the Tourist Industry of Azerbaijan and Trade Industrial Chamber of the Azerbaijan Republic.
