Business

AzEL OPENS NEW SHOP IN BAKU

By Anar Jabrayilli Azernews Staff Writer

AzEl (Azerbaijan Electronics) opened a specialized shop of computer and office equipment on 28 May street of Baku Friday.

Addressing the opening ceremony, the AzEl President Igor Yakovenko said the shop would offer products of the world's leading companies at prices lowest in the Caucasus. He added that AzEl was an authorized distributor of these companies in Azerbaijan.

The first in the Caucasus to sell computer and office equipment and provide related services, AzEl already has 5 shops in Baku and Sumgayit. The company is expected to open a shop in Ganja as well.

According to the company's sales manager Rashad Ismibayli, prices in the new shop will be lower than in the other 4.

Major taxpayer

The Ministry of Taxes has included Azerbaijan Electronics (AzEl) into the list of the country's major taxpayers since August. Mr. Yakovenko said the company transferred over AZM1 billion to the state budget in taxes and customs duties in 8 months of 2001.

According to him, AzEl's turnover is growing by the year and exceeded a AZM10 billion benchmark in 2000. Preliminary calculations show that this year's performance is likely to rise another 15-20%, he said.

Mr.Yakovenko explained the surge by the fact that AzEl is the official partner of the world's leading producers of electronic equipment in Azerbaijan.

SIEMENS TALKS SAGA TO END THIS WEEK

Talks between the Ministry for Economic Development and German "Siemens", winner of the tender for a long-term concession of the "Baku Electricity Grid" joint stock company, remain deadlocked, with Siemens demanding government guarantees for the payments on behalf of the disadvantaged categories of the population. This week is expected to produce results of the talks, according to the Ministry.

A source from the Ministry has indicated that if Siemens keeps insisting on its demand, the agreement will not be signed and talks with Turkish "Barmerk Holding", second in the tender, will start.

EUROPEANS TO FLY TO SHANGHAI THROUGH AZERBAIJAN

The Azerbaijan Hava Yollari (AzAL) state concern and Luxembourg's Cargolux signed a cooperation agreement on Monday. The document, signed by the AzAL general director Jahangir Asgarov and the Cargolux vice-president Pierre Vespere, opens the Luxembourg-Baku-Shanghai flights three times a week aboard Boeing-747 liners.

According to Mr. Asgarov, this will be the first flight of Boeing-747 aircraft to the Bina airport of Baku, while Azerbaijan will become the first CIS country to have established contact with Cargolux. The core reason for the choice of the Baku airport was the conformity of its air traffic control system with international standards.

The flight will replace the previous one, Luxemburg-Baku-Shanghai, is two hours faster, economically efficient. In addition, Cargolux has opened an office at the Bina Airport.

Every flight is also expected to deliver 20-50 tons of oil and gas equipment for Azerbaijan.

Attending the signing ceremony was vice-premier Abid Sharifov.

ENTREPRENEURIAL CONFERENCE DUE IN SUMGAYIT

The National Confederation of Entrepreneurial Organizations is expected to hold a conference in Sumgayit on September 7. The objective of the event is to discuss the plight of entrepreneurship in Sumgayit, challenges and ways of facilitating them, according to the Confederation.

The conference will be attended by government officials, trade union confederation members and Confederation executives.

CEMENT MARKET IN DEPLORABLE PLIGHT

By Anar Jabrayilli Azernews Staff Writer

The general meeting of "Garadagh Cement" shareholders on Thursday was dedicated to the enterprise's yearly performance. Changes have been introduced to the by-laws and the financial and revision commission, according to the chairman of the watchdog council of the company Peter Dorr.

He said the meeting was attended by 1,020 of 1,187 shareholders, so the required quorum of 60% was achieved with a huge margin. He said the enterprise's debt to various organizations, state budget and other entities, in the amount of $2 million, had been cleared.

In conclusion, shareholders wrote to the Azerbaijan President describing the deplorable plight of the Azerbaijan cement market and asked for urgent measures to rectify the situation.

Dividends due in 2005

Although Azerbaijan's cement plant was converted into the "Garadagh Cement" joint stock company and privatized in 1999 through an investment competition, its shareholders have not received any dividends yet. The plant's Azeri shareholders, some 14%, are not expected to get them sooner than in 2007, according to the "Garadagh Cement" general director David Stone.

However, if economic reforms in Azerbaijan are successful, it may take place in 2005, he said referring to calculations carried out in cooperation with foreign experts. This is explained by the fact that so far the plant has been repaying its outstanding debts.

Therefore, a positive balance is not anticipated any time soon. Mr. Stone explained the low incomes by a high cost of energy.

$8mln invested

Over $8 million has been invested in the reconstruction of separate structural units, mounting of new equipment and improving the quality of cement by the "Garadagh Cement" joint stock company, Mr. Stone said.

According to him, the investment in 2000 constituted $4.3 million, while in the 6 months of 2001 it has amounted to $3.75 million.

Also growing is the production volume, which surged 1.5 times in 2000 as compared to 1999 to constitute 246,000 tons. 267,000 tons of cement, or twice as much as in the same period of last year, has already been produced this year. It is planned to hike production to 400,000 tons this year.

Mr. Stone said production is expected to reach 900,000 tons in 2004 and a million tons in 2005. $23 million will be invested in the JSC in the coming 5 years.

Government care

The government bodies, especially the Customs Committee and the Ministry of Taxes, are trying to prevent the entry of cement made in Ardabil (Iran) into Azerbaijan's construction materials markets. Raids are being carried out to spot the sale of illegally imported cement, the "Garadagh Cement" general director David Stone told Azernews Saturday.

According to him, such measures became particularly noticeable in August following the company's complaints to different institutions.

"Our appeal was necessitated by the fact that the smuggled cement was causing irreparable damage both to our company and the state budget", Mr. Stone said.

Of 1,590,644 shares of "Garadagh Cement" joint stock company 1,368,560, or 86.003%, are owned by Swiss "Holsim", according to the general director David Stone.

He said the other 13.9619% of shares are owned by physical entities, while 0.0351% is owned by the company itself, of 1,187 shareholders 1,185 are physical and 2 legal entities.

AzAL REJECTS CANADIAN HELICOPTERS

The Azerbaijan Hava Yollari (AzAL) state concern has turned down the offer of Canadian "Bell" helicopter company, AzAL's general director Jahangir Asgarov said Monday.

According to him, the reason for the rejection is that the parties have failed to agree on a price as "Bell" was asking for $54 million for its 7 helicopters, while AzAL was offering only $45 million.

Mr. Asgarov said helicopters are to be purchased to service foreign companies active in Azerbaijan.