Azerbaijan’s Socar secures financing for $3.5bn gas chemical complex

By bne IntelliNews June 20, 2016

Azerbaijan's state-owned oil company Socar has signed a memorandum of understanding with Russia’s Gazprombank, Russian credit agency Exiar and the Italian credit agency for the financing of a $3.5bn gas chemical complex, Trend news agency reported on June 18.

Russian investment, including contracts to Russian contractors and the cost of equipment and materials, will represent a fifth of the total investment. The agreement was signed during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (Spief). A separate agreement with Gazprombank was also signed for the development and delivery of nitrogen units for Socar's polypropylene plants under construction in Azerbaijan.

Socar has been seeking to increase its downstream investments in recent years, and is currently financing several projects related to petrochemicals and oil refineries in Azerbaijan and Turkey. Foremost among them are the Star refinery on Turkey's Aegean coast, a $5.5bn investment, and the OGPC petrochemical complex in Azerbaijan. 

Gazprombank, the banking arm of Russia's state-owned gas giant Gazprom, ranks as Russia's third largest bank.

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