(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 25. Azerbaijan will
start gas supplies via the Solidarity Ring, Ambassador
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Bulgaria to Azerbaijan Rouslan
Stoyanov said in an exclusive interview with trend.
“In the last year Bulgaria managed to diversify its gas
supplies. From a country through which Russian natural gas passed,
Bulgaria is becoming an active distributor of gas from various
sources. Among other factors, this is due to the agreement on
access to the Turkish liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, the
agreements with Greece and the construction of new gas connections,
including with Serbia, the construction of which began on 1
February 2023. During the official visit of President of Azerbaijan
Ilham Aliyev to Sofia in October 2022, the Bulgarian side proposed
the possibility of supplying additional quantities of Azerbaijani
gas to Central, Western and Southern Europe by using the gas
transmission networks of Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia,
for which there is a proposal and prior agreement from the gas
operators of the four countries,” he said.
Stoyanov noted that Bulgaria expects the opening ceremony of the
office of the Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR.
“A memorandum will also be signed to formalize the Solidarity
Ring (STRING) initiative, which was proposed by the Bulgarian
President Rumen Radev in October 2022, and through which the
increased gas supplies from Azerbaijan to the EU, agreed in 2022 by
EC President Ursula von der Leyen, will be delivered to the EU with
minimal costs,” he explained.
The envoy went on to add that the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) is
a huge project and Azerbaijan was an important driving force for
its successful realization.
“Its implementation was an example of what can be accomplished
when governments, private companies and financial institutions are
motivated and willing to work together. I am pleased that Bulgaria
is a part of this endeavor from the very beginning. Of course, this
would not have been possible without the long-standing and friendly
bilateral political relations between our countries, which have
naturally developed into a strategic partnership. Now Bulgaria is
the only country through which the SGC is not directly passing but
is still receiving 1 bcm of Azerbaijani gas annually. This amount
represents about 10% of the TAP capacity at this stage and about
30% of Bulgaria's annual consumption. Thus, in relation to our
country, Azerbaijan becomes a crucial energy partner for Bulgaria
and the EU as a whole in our endeavor for real diversification of
both the sources and routes for gas supply,” noted Rouslan
Stoyanov.
He recalled that the inauguration ceremony of the Interconnector
Greece-Bulgaria (IGB), which was held in Sofia on 1 October 2022 in
the presence of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham
Aliyev and other heads of state and government as well as the
European Commission`s President Ursula von der Leyen, marked the
beginning of its commercial operation.
“The IGB is a key route to carry gas from the Trans-Adriatic
Pipeline (TAP) and Greece to Bulgaria and neighboring countries. It
is a crucial project for the diversification of gas supply in the
South-East European region, a project of common interest and a
priority project under the Central and South Eastern Europe Energy
Connectivity High-Level Group. IGB together with the well-developed
Bulgarian national gas transmission system and already existing gas
connectors with Turkey, Greece and Romania will provide to my
country an opportunity to become a real regional hub for gas
distribution from different sources and different routes to a
number of consumers, which in fact is the essence of the
diversification. So, the SGC has changed not only Bulgaria's energy
map but the one of the entire Balkan region,” he said.
The ambassador pointed out that Bulgaria is eager to lead the
efforts for strengthening the energy cooperation between
the countries of Southeast Europe and to explore ways to overcome
the emerging difficulties in the energy sector in a more
coordinated and efficient manner.
“Azerbaijan is a crucial energy partner for the EU and we expect
our partnership to grow further on the basis of the EU-Azerbaijan
Memorandum of Understanding signed in July 2022. The possibility of
increasing natural gas supplies from Azerbaijan to at least 20 bcm
per year by 2027 will contribute to the energy diversification
objectives in the REPowerEU Plan.
Regarding additional supplies to Bulgaria from Azerbaijan,
everything will depend on the availability of free volumes of
natural gas as well as on the international gas prices,” said
Stoyanov.
Room for cooperation in non-energy sector
“At present, energy cooperation stands out as a major area of
interaction between our two countries. Bulgaria has a marked
interest in participating and cooperating, and thus closely
monitors and analyzes the latest developments and plans of
Azerbaijan in the field of energy, in the context of the country's
potential for the production and transmission of alternative
renewable energy, as well as in the transport field - in the
context of the growing commercial attractiveness of the transport
corridor for cargo transit through Azerbaijan from and to Central
Asia. The Green Energy Development and Transmission Project, the
agreement on which was signed on December 17, 2022 in Bucharest
between the governments of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, and
Hungary is viewed from Sofia as particularly promising in this
regard,” he said.
Of course, as said Stoyanov, additional possible directions for
active cooperation with Azerbaijan can be sought in the fields of
supplies of goods for the food industry and equipment for it, wines
and soft drinks, perfumes and cosmetics, medicines, garments,
shoes, furniture, sanitary equipment, building materials,
electronic and electrotechnical goods, electric motors, machines,
lifting vehicles, etc.
“The Azerbaijani side also has shown interest in cooperation in
the field of agriculture and forestry. Construction is another
promising area for trade and economic cooperation, given the
large-scale internal investment program implemented by Azerbaijan,
which foresees the construction of a number of infrastructure sites
of national importance, including railway and road infrastructure,
a new port in Baku, residential, office and business buildings,
etc., which creates opportunities for Bulgarian construction
companies,” said the Bulgarian diplomat.
He pointed out that there is a potential for the development of
cooperation in the field of tourism.
“To strengthen tourism ties the Bulgarian Ministry of Tourism
has proposed to host a meeting of the Bulgaria-Azerbaijan Tourism
Working Group in 2023 with a view to elaborating a joint action
plan for the period 2023-2025. Just a few numbers: In 2022 5 040
tourists from Azerbaijan have visited Bulgaria, which is an
increase of 114 % compared to the number of visits in 2021. For
comparison in 2019, before Covid-19 they were 4158, in 2020 during
the pandemic they were 1682 and in 2021, the total number of visits
of Azerbaijani tourists was 2350. Here I would like to recall that
in 2018 and 2019“Buta Airways” operated a direct line between the
cities of Baku and Sofia. For the months during which the line
functioned, an increase in the number of passengers was observed.
The line is currently not operating, but both sides are actively
negotiating to relaunch it. Opportunities are being sought for the
development and promotion of the partnership between tour operators
from both countries, the development of auxiliary and entertainment
services, the exchange of groups of tourists, the participation of
companies in the organized tourist exhibitions of both countries,
the development of tourist routes. In this regard, just a few days
ago, Bulgaria was represented with a national stand at the 19th
Azerbaijan International Travel and Tourism Exhibition - the
largest international tourism exhibition organized in the country
and has received the status of a leading international exhibition
in the Caucasus region. The Azerbaijani side has also shown
interest in the opportunities of Bulgarian companies to participate
in the construction of tourist infrastructure in the country,” he
said.
Stoyanov noted that investments currently remain an
underdeveloped direction in the bilateral relations between
Azerbaijan and Bulgaria.
“Within the framework of President Ilham Aliyev's visit to Sofia
30.09-01.10.2022, a number of promising bilateral investment
projects were discussed in a wide range of fields (along with
energy), for example: in the fields of information technology,
agriculture, technology, education, the humanitarian field, etc. A
decision was made a representative office of the state energy
company of Azerbaijan SOCAR to be opened in Bulgaria. The company
is already present in a number of European countries, in some as
owner of a chain of petrol stations, in others as a partner in oil
refining enterprises, i.e. the company has a lot of experience.
Thus, we are confident that based on the significant potential, the
representation of SOCAR in Sofia will contribute to the further
deepening of our bilateral relations,” added the diplomat.
Overview of trade relations
“The volume of bilateral trade does not meet the existing
potential. The Agreement on Economic Cooperation between the
Government of the Republic of Bulgaria and the Government of the
Republic of Azerbaijan, signed in Baku on November 12, 2007 is a
solid base for intensifying our economic partnership, which must be
further developed and brought to a state adequate to the
requirements and of the modern times. The mechanism of the Joint
Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation must be
restored and actively used, as it is the platform for discussion of
a wide range of projects in different fields,” he said.
Stoyanov noted that Bulgaria is ready to support the
organization of visits of Azerbaijani business delegations to Sofia
and other major Bulgarian cities, to present the opportunities for
cooperation in different areas such as: energy, agriculture, food
industry, machine building, tourism, etc. Bulgaria can export
internationally well-known industry equipment, food industry
products, pharmaceuticals, perfumery-cosmetics etc., that are also
known to the Azerbaijani people.
“The Bulgarian-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(BATIP), established in 2014, has an important role to play in this
process. Bulgaria wishes to cooperate more closely with Azerbaijan
in the field of transport. Our interest lies in the transport and
energy corridors, and digital connectivity linking Asia and Europe
via Bulgaria,” added the diplomat.
Priorities of mission in Azerbaijan
“First of all, I would like to say that it is an honour and a
privilege to represent my country in Azerbaijan. Last year, our
countries celebrated 30 years since the establishment of our
diplomatic relations. Our countries have been historically
connected through sincere friendship and mutual respect, which is
also confirmed by the active political dialogue at high level and
at the highest level over the last years. Relations between the two
countries have been elevated to a strategic level and Bulgaria
regards Azerbaijan as an important, reliable and proven priority
partner. As Ambassador, I wish and will make efforts to deepen the
practical and fruitful cooperation in all areas of mutual
interest,” he said.
Of course, as Stoyanov noted, one of the major areas in
bilateral relations is energy.
“Following the commissioning of the Greece-Bulgaria
interconnector, our country is now receiving in full the agreed
upon Azerbaijani gas supplies of 1 billion cubic meters per year
under the long-term contract signed by our two countries. There
are, of course, other areas which our countries are mutually
interested in developing, such as innovation, high technology,
trade, investment, culture and education - important prerequisites
for deepening further our bilateral cooperation,” the ambassador
said.
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