Several Armenian companies are in talks with Azerbaijan to import Azerbaijani fuel, Armenian officials have said.
Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan spoke about the negotiations in an interview with RFE/RL on Friday.
‘They [Armenian companies] should announce it, it’s their trade secret’, Papoyan said, declining to disclose the names of the companies involved.
He said that publicising them at this stage would be ‘very problematic’.
In the meantime, major Armenian fuel importers declined to provide any information in response to an RFE/RL inquiry.
Noting that the majority of Armenia’s fuel is currently imported from Russia, RFE/RL asked Papoyan whether Azerbaijani fuel would be competitive on the Armenian market.
‘If it is competitive, it will enter the market; if not, it will not’, Papoyan responded.
He added that the state’s task is not to influence competitiveness, but to ‘create as many opportunities as possible’.
‘The rest is for the private sector to negotiate and talk’, Papoyan concluded.
Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan, who also serves as Armenia’s representative on the border demarcation commission with Azerbaijan, again in response to an RFE/RL inquiry, confirmed that during his visit to Gabala, Azerbaijan, in late November, the issue of importing Azerbaijani fuel was discussed with the Azerbaijani side.
Arshaluys Barseghyan
‘There are opportunities for cooperation’, Grigoryan said, while declining to provide further details.
Grigoryan also said that the discussions were ongoing regarding the mutual trade of other goods.
Georgia ‘breaking the peace’?
The announcement came amidst speculation that Georgia may be hampering efforts to establish trade between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Earlier in December, the Armenian Economy Ministry confirmed it held discussions with Georgia on the possible first transit of Azerbaijani fuel through Georgian territory.
Arshaluys Barseghyan
Georgian authorities said they had approved requests from ‘partner countries’ for a one-time transit, charging no tariffs.
This came in response to an article on Minval.az, a pro-government Azerbaijani media outlet, suggesting that Georgia was demanding exorbitant tariffs for Azerbaijani oil and petroleum products bound for Armenia. They called this an example of Tbilisi trying ‘to break the peace’ in the region, adding that Georgia ‘cannot afford the luxury of ignoring’ the interests of Azerbaijan.
According to Minval.az, Georgia was demanding payment of $0.82 per tonne per kilometre for the transit of fuel to Armenia.
They compared this to $0.02 per tonne per kilometre charged by Azerbaijan for shipments from Russia to Georgia, and the $0.04–$0.05 per tonne per kilometre charged by Georgia for fuel heading to ports on Georgia’s Black Sea coast.
OC Media
The reopening of transport routes has been one of the key and most sensitive issues in ongoing peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
In November, Armenia received wheat by rail through Azerbaijan and Georgia — first from Russia, then from Kazakhstan — a historic development as the two countries continue moving forward in their peace process.
