(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 5. The latest report fromFDI Intelligence, a division of the Financial Times, named Baku thethird most sought-after investment destination globally.
As per the report, the agreements reached last year regardingforeign direct investments in Azerbaijan mark the largest projectssince 2017. As such, in 2023, the economy of Azerbaijan saw a heftyinflux of foreign direct investments totaling $6.7 billion. Theleading contributors to Azerbaijan's economy were the UK, with $1.9billion, Türkiye with $1.3 billion, Cyprus with $792 million,Russia with $617 million, and Iran with $396 million.
Azerbaijan's welcoming business climate and promising investmentopportunities have been drawing in a multitude of foreigninvestors. Across various sectors of the economy, pivotal projectsare underway, spearheading innovation and growth whilesimultaneously fostering the creation of new employmentopportunities for the country's workforce.
Last year, an agreement was inked with between Azerbaijan'sInvestment Company (AIC) and Hungary's Hell Group. As per the dealinked, a new factory with an annual production capacity of 700million aluminum beverage cans is set to be constructed in the AlatFree Economic Zone. The goods produced will cater to local demandand will also be exported to Central Asian countries. The projectwith a hefty investment of $211 million aims to generate over 300job opportunities.
Another major venture set to receive substantial investment inAzerbaijan involves the production of electric motor buses througha partnership with the Chinese BYD Company Limited within theSumgayit Chemical Industry Park. Initially, BYD has earmarked $34million for the project, with an additional $60 million planned forinvestment in projects aimed at creating added value. The projectaims to generate 800 new job opportunities. Starting from the thirdyear of production, there are plans to localize spare parts forelectric motor buses.
Moreover, with the participation of the Turkish firm "Gen İlaçve Sağlık Ürünleri Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş.", a project is slated forlaunch in the Pirallahi Industrial Park in 2023, with an investmentoutlay of $35 million. Additionally, construction is underway for apharmaceutical facility in the Alat Free Economic Zone incollaboration with the Israeli BioPharmax company, with a projectcost amounting to 45 million euros.
Azerbaijan has forged highly successful partnerships with energycompanies from Arab nations. One notable example is thecollaboration with the UAE's Masdar, which has been activelyengaged in Azerbaijan since 2020. Masdar achieved a significantmilestone with the successful launch of the 230 MW Garadagh solarplant in October 2023.
Furthermore, Masdar has entered into agreements to developonshore wind and solar projects, as well as integrated offshorewind and green hydrogen projects, boasting a combined capacity of4GW in the country. Remarkably, Masdar and Azerbaijan have mutuallyagreed to an option to expand the total capacity of renewableprojects to an impressive 10GW, spanning across varioustechnologies. Moreover, it has been revealed that Masdar will kickoff the construction of several renewable energy projects inAzerbaijan this November, with a total value surpassing $1billion.
In 2019, Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power made its debut in Azerbaijan, the company is developing a 240 MW wind power plant inAzerbaijan, with a total investment of $286 million. The EBRDfacilitated a syndicated loan of $197.1 million (186.9 millioneuros) to ACWA Power Azerbaijan Renewable Energy on October 26,2023. Additionally, the OPEC Fund approved a $50 million loan toACWA Power Wind Azerbaijan Renewable Energy on December 15 of thisyear, aimed at supporting the construction of the Khizi-Absheronwind power plant.
Earlier this year, ACWA Power signed four implementationagreements for major projects, including a 1GW onshore wind farm, a1.5GW offshore wind farm, and a battery energy storage project, incollaboration with the Ministry of Energy.
So, these are just a few examples of Azerbaijan's successfulinvestment partnerships with a wide array of global counterparts discussions with both existing and potential partners focuson attracting investments into new ventures. Recently, forinstance, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan established a joint investmentfund aimed at attracting bilateral investments across varioussectors. Additionally, at the recent Tashkent Investment Forum,Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan explored new avenues for investmentcollaboration.
With the COP29 conference scheduled for November this year,Azerbaijan aims not only to promote the climate agenda but also toshowcase investment opportunities to potential partners. Notably,significant investment prospects are emerging not only in Baku butalso in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, offeringopportunities in the energy sector, agriculture, transportationinfrastructure development, and various other industries. Companiesfrom Türkiye, Russia, Israel, Germany, and other nations arealready capitalizing on these opportunities.
Azerbaijan's diverse investment landscape comes with taxincentives. Foreign investors can trust that Azerbaijan has robustlaws and regulations to safeguard their rights and interests.
Overall, Azerbaijan has secured a spot in the top sevencountries favorable for investment, according to the InternationalMonetary Fund's 2024 report. This indicates that Azerbaijan willcontinue efforts to enhance its investment appeal, leading to moreopportunities for investment attraction in the future.
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