Conference

Dedicated to the 96th anniversary of the National Leader of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev and organised with support from SOCAR by Baku Higher Oil School, in partnership with the Confidence Capital Ltd., a British company, the 4th SOCAR International Caspian and Central Asia Downstream Forum: Trading, Logistics, Refining, Petrochemicals opened in Baku. While greeting the participants, Rector of Baku Higher Oil School Elmar Gasimov noted in his welcoming speech that the Forum pays tribute to the anniversary of the National Leader of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev and that it has become a traditional and pivotal event in the Caspian oil calendar.

The Rector emphasized that the Forum serves as a unique platform for promoting the oil strategy which was instituted by the National Leader Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev and is successfully advanced under the guidance of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev as well as stressed that the Forum brings specialists from various regions and companies to identify prospects for the oil & gas industry development in the Caspian region and Central Asia, discuss the largest international projects in trading, logistics, refining and petrochemicals, strengthen the existing cooperation with partners from the region, and forge new business networking.

Then, the floor was given to the Minister of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan Parviz Shahbazov, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev, the First Vice President of SOCAR Khoshbakht Yusifzade, Vice President for Communications, External Affairs, Strategy & Region at BP Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli, Rector of Baku State University Elchin Babayev and Director of Communications at UkrGazVydobuvannya Volodimir Gaidash who shared their views about the Forum and extended their best wishes on its a success.             

Convened annually since 2016, this year’s Forum brings together nearly 300 participants from over 20 countries and top managers from the leading national and overseas companies and fuel-energy, petrochemical and logistics facilities in the Caspian region and Central Asia as well as relevant forefront experts, analysts, representatives from the diplomatic corps, and a wide range of other specialists. The Forum offers participants the opportunity to gain insights into the prospects of oil & gas industry development in Azerbaijan, oil & gas markets in the Caspian region and Central Asia, hydrocarbon logistics and transit potential, major export routes, crude and products trade flows, modernization of the refineries and petrochemical plants, innovative technologies in the oil & gas industry, and explore various other observations and expert opinion.

Forum participants are expected to visit SOCAR Carbomide, SOCAR Methanol, SOCAR Polymer, and Sangachal Oil Terminal.