Minister: Azerbaijan intends to invest $20 bln in oil refining in future

Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 27 / Trend E. Ismayilov /
About $20 billion will be invested in oil refining in Azerbaijan in the future, Minister of Energy and Industry Natig Aliyev said during a roundtable on "Azerbaijan's State Independence: industrial and energy complex, on the way to new heights" on Tuesday.
"After gaining independence, the Azerbaijani oil and gas sector has reached great achievements," minister said. "The development was observed in all sectors, particularly in oil and gas production, refining, chemical production."
The oil production in the country amounted to about 9 million tons per year in early 1990's. The figure exceeded 50 million tons last year. The growth hit 5.5 times.
Aliyev said that the success was achieved in the field of gas production. Earlier, Azerbaijan imported gas to meet its own needs. At present, the country exports gas to several countries. It has an extensive gas transmission infrastructure.

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