Azeri Gas Export Up 7% Despite Halting Deliveries to Russia

Azerbaijan’s gas export increased by almost 7 percent in the first half of 2015, despite the country having stopped gas deliveries to Russia during the current year.

According to the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan’s new report, the country exported about 4.548 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas during six months of 2015, which indicates 6.8 percent increase year-to-year.

About 896 million cubic meters of the mentioned figure is Azerbaijan’s gas export to Georgia, as well as gas swap with Iran and the rest of volume is its gas deliveries to Turkey.

In total, Azerbaijan has planned to increase gas production level from 29.7 bcm in 2014 to 30.2 bcm in 2015.

Azerbaijan permitted Russia to supply gas to methanol plant

After a month Russian Gazprom announced that it is preparing to export gas to Azerbaijan, Baku confirmed on July 15th that AzMeCo methanol company will received Russian gas and the country has already permitted Gazprom to start gas supply.

The head of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) Rovnag Abdullayev told reporters that AzMeCo hasn’t signed long-term gas contract with SOCAR and we don’t have resources for this methanol plant.

The chairman of Management Board of Gazprom Alexei Miller explained during a meeting with the President of SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev on June 19 that “due to the increasing domestic gas consumption and economic growth in Azerbaijan, Gazprom is ready to satisfy the country’s demand for gas import in required volumes.”

According to his statement, Gazprom is ready to export 1 bcm to 1.2 bcm of gas to Azerbaijan by the end of 2015.

AzMeCo’s final production capacity is 720,000 tons per annum, but since August 2014, AzMeCo has produced and exported 191 thousand tons of methanol.