Publications

Technotun, an Armenian developer company and Europe's largest hospitality company, Accor from France signed a cooperation memorandum. According to the deal, the Technotun company will construct the Pullman Living and Residences Yerevan hotel complex in Yerevan's Nork-Marash district for Accor. The investment project is expected to be worth over 100 Mln Usd. In 2023, Italy became the leader among European countries in the amount of oil and gas imported from Azerbaijan. In particular, total Azerbaijani oil exports to the country exceeded 11 million tons. Italy also imported 9,4 billion cubic meters of gas. The minister also underlined that Italy is one of Azerbaijan's main trading partners. Last year, trade between the two countries amounted to 15,6 billion dollars.

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) plays a crucial role in shaping global oil markets through its production policies. OPEC's decisions often influence Azerbaijan, a significant oil-producing nation. OPEC's production policies influence Azerbaijan's oil sector, shaping its economic trajectory and growth prospects. Georgia opened a tender for the highway project between Tbilisi and Rustavi. Companies must submit a plan for a four-lane cement-concrete highway with the necessary communications, modern lighting systems, and environmental protection documents. The design will also consider pedestrian safety issues since the section passes near the Ponichala area.

Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company KazMunayGas and Russia's Lukoil have commenced the implementation of Kalamkas-Sea and Khazar projects, reported the Kazakh Ministry of Energy. The construction of offshore platforms will begin in 2026 at Kazakh shipyards, ensuring an early start to production at the Kalamkas-Sea field. The initiative is expected to attract direct investments of at least $6 billion and create approximately 2,000 jobs during construction, with an additional 300 positions during operation.

The Russian company Gazprom signed contracts with Kazakhstan for gas transit to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2024. In addition, the Chairman of the Board of Gazprom signed with the First Deputy PM of Kazakhstan, Roman Sklyar, an action plan to increase the supply of Russian gas through Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan via the Central Asia – Center (CAC) – 4 gas pipeline.

The Kazakh Ministry of Energy has formed a pool of 60 investment projects worth 17 trillion tenge (38.1 Bln Usd). The main areas of investment projects include commissioning new energy capacity, constructing gas processing plants, expanding domestic refineries, renewable energy projects, petrochemical development, etc. Railway China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan is a strategic project for connectivity between China and Central Asia. China is steadfast in collaborating with the Central Asian nations to swiftly finalize the strategic corridor, ensuring mutual advantages for all involved countries and the wider region. Similarly, Kyrgyzstan's trade relationship with China has witnessed remarkable expansion, culminating in a mutual trade turnover of $19.8bn by the end of 2023. This figure reflects a 30% increase from the preceding year.

The European Union (EU) announced its readiness to invest €10 bn in sustainable transport connectivity in Central Asia. The EU delegation in Tajikistan announced this. At the Investors' Forum in Brussels in January 2024, representatives of the five Central Asian countries expressed their support for strengthening transport routes between Europe and the region, thus improving regional integration. Turkmenistan and the OPEC Fund signed the Partnership Framework Program for 2024-2029. The program is aimed at expanding bilateral cooperation with multilateral financial development institutions. CASCA+: a meeting of representatives of railway administrations took place in Tashkent. During the meeting, the parties discussed projects that should be implemented to develop the CASCA+ transport corridor. CASCA+ is a joint initiative of the state railways of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Türkiye and Uzbekistan. Currently, this route covers three regions - Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan), the South Caucasus (Azerbaijan and Georgia), and Anatolia (Türkiye).

Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to boost investment in Uzbekistan's infrastructure, education, and agricultural projects. The parties exchanged views on the prospects for financing projects in transport, logistics, education, agriculture, water, environment, livestock, rural development, and others.