The signing ceremony of the contract for the modernization and reconstruction of the Heydar Aliyev refinery in Baku, the most important crude oil refininery of Azerbaijan, took place today in Baku between the subsidiaries of Maire Tecnimont SpA. (Tecnimont S.p.a. and KT-Kinetics Technology S.p.A.) and Azerbaijan’s State oil company SOCAR.
The overall contract value equals approximately 800 million US dollars.
The aim of the project, which will involve the Italian group for about 40 months, is to increase the production capacity of the refinery to 7.5 million tons per year, together with the increase in the quality of refined products. The project allows the Italian group, already present since 2015 with an innovative polypropylene production plant and a high-density polyethylene plant, to position itself among the first international companies in Azerbaijan, performing an increasingly central role in the country's industrial development.
Ambassador Augusto Massari, invited to the signing ceremony, emphasized the strategic and long-term value of the agreement for bilateral relations between Italy and Azerbaijan: "diplomatic and political-institutional relationships must be coupled with concrete industrial partnerships: the contract signed today between SOCAR and Tecnimont is a clear example of this. This type of projects, besides its strategic value for the two companies, brings our two countries’ economies even closer, further strengthening our friendly relationship.”
Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO of Maire Tecnimont, commented: "This contract allows the Group to consolidate its fruitful relationship with SOCAR also in the refining business, supporting the strategy of integration with the petrochemical business. We are truly honored to keep on supporting such a prestigious client in the development of the country’s hydrocarbon treatment sector.”
Rovnag Abdullayev, President of SOCAR, added: "Today we have made another step toward the production of high-quality diesel, gasoline and other Euro 5 fuels. Maire Tecnimont is one of the global leading companies. Our cooperation with companies at this level will enable us to supply high-quality fuels to the Azerbaijani domestic market, and increase export revenues in the years to come. "
