Publications

Iran inks deal to construct part of INSTC in Armenia. Iran and Armenia have signed a contract for the construction of the Agarak-Kajaran route as part of Tranche 4 of the International North-South Transit Corridor (INSTC) in the Armenian territory. Economic exchanges between the two countries can be increased to three times the current level which is about 1 Bln Usd. Azerbaijan Italy eyes collaboration in fields of food and agriculture. The Ambassador of Italy to Azerbaijan, Claudio Taffuri, recently spoke at a joint event to mark the launch of ADA University School of Agricultural and Food Sciences and World Food Day held in Baku. During his speech, Taffuri highlighted Italy's potential to contribute to bringing technologies in the field of food and agriculture to Azerbaijan.

November 30 - December 1, 2023 | Baku, Azerbaijan - INMERGE INNOVATION SUMMIT. Keynotes, Matchmaking Sessions, Networking Sessions, and Panels organized during InMerge Innovation Summit in Baku will empower young entrepreneurs to scale globally, partner with leading corporations, and increase the visibility of the local innovation ecosystem in the global market. Want to know more click here.

Saipem unveils its operational strategy for Azerbaijan by year-end 2023. Saipem and its consortium partners Bos Shelf and Star Gulf were awarded call-off 007 under the Shah Deniz Stage 2 Master Agreement by bp, on behalf of the Shah Deniz partnership in 2016. The total value of the contract is approximately 1,5 Bln Usd (Saipem share approximately 1,3 Bln Usd), with a duration of five years plus a possible extension for a further five.



Georgian PM, UAE Foreign Trade Minister discuss bilateral relations, future cooperation. The agreement will open the UAE’s 10 Mln consumer market with “high purchasing power” for 97.5% of Georgian products, it will eliminate or significantly reduce tariffs and promote trade in goods, services and investment. The transit of Russian gas through Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan via the Central Asia-Center gas pipeline officially commenced. Addressing the event, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said that Kazakhstan had fully completed the preparation of the main gas pipeline across its territory on time. The project, aimed at diversifying Russian gas export supplies and expanding and modernizing Kazakhstan’s gas transportation infrastructure, is expected to meet Uzbekistan’s growing demand for up to three billion cubic meters of natural gas annually. President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev also delivered speeches at the launching ceremony.

Kazakhstan, China Sign 30 Commercial Documents Worth Over 16 Bln Usd. Kazakh and Chinese major companies and institutions signed agreements on the transfer of technology for production, the opening of credit lines, the supply of vehicles powered by new energy sources, and trade and investment agreements, among others.

Eni published results for the third quarter and nine months of 2023. In September, Plenitude inaugurated its first photovoltaic plant in the Republic of Kazakhstan, with a 50 MW installed capacity. The photovoltaic plant will produce up to around 90 GWh of electricity annually. China is willing to continue to enhance political mutual trust with Kyrgyzstan, strengthen the alignment of development strategies, seek more convergence points of common interests for mutual achievement and common development. The two countries should also expand cooperation in emerging industries such as advanced manufacturing, digital economy, new energy vehicles, smart agriculture, and clean energy to foster new growth drivers. The National Bank of Tajikistan (NBT) is seeking investment from the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The parties discussed issues related to the potential development of Islamic banking in Tajikistan, the establishment of correspondent accounts, and the collaboration between the central banks of the UAE and Tajikistan in various areas of the banking sector, including the exchange of information and the study of the UAE's experience in the field of Islamic banking.

Citizens of Tajikistan were allowed to remotely open cards and accounts in Russian banks. It will be possible to pick them up only after entering the Russian Federation.

Turkmenistan and Russia recently held discussionson enhancing trade and economic cooperation as a priority. The priority vector of cooperation is the trade and economic sphere. Russia has for many years been one of our country's leading trade partners. Bilateral trade has maintained growth. Cooperation is successfully developing in various areas, including the oil and gas and industrial sectors, as well as other industries. The intergovernmental commission, which coordinates efforts on the whole range of issues of mutually beneficial Turkmen-Russian partnership, is working productively. Russia is implementing over 20 investment projects costing 3,5 Bln Usd in Turkmenistan. The transport of Russian goods to Turkmenistan nearly quadrupled in 2022 compared with the previous year. Uzbekistan and Russia are implementing projects worth 28 Bln Usd. Russian capital investments in Uzbekistan have already exceeded 13 Bln Usd. To date, 17 banks of Uzbekistan have connected to the financial message transmission system of the Bank of Russia.

Italian luxury hospitality company Arsenale has announced plans to launch a luxury cruise train to take tourists between Toshkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva from late 2026. Arsenale is to launch La Dolce Vita luxury ‘slow travel’ train services in Italy next year, and is developing a Dream of the Desert train in Saudi Arabia and similar service in the UAE.

Recently, President Mirziyoyev approved the phased concept paving the way for wholesale and retail Electricity Markets in 2023-2030. Household consumers will come to benefit from regulated tariffs until 2035. Please click here to access the legal note of our Central Asia Partner Centil Law Firm.