Minister: Czech Republic interested in accessing Azerbaijani gas

The Czech Republic is interested in getting access to Azerbaijani gas, Czech Industry and Trade Minister Jozef Sikela said.

"First of all, the Czech Republic is interested in getting access to Azerbaijani gas. Your country is already known in Europe as a reliable energy supplier. And now that we have managed to reduce our supplies from Russia to zero for 10 months, we are rebuilding our supply chain. Here Azerbaijan can make a great contribution, given the positive cooperation we have already had," he said, Trend reports.

According to the minister, the Czech Republic also seeks to conclude medium- and long-term agreements with Azerbaijan’s State Oil Company (SOCAR) on gas supplies from Azerbaijan.

Sikela also noted that Azerbaijan has great potential in the production of environmentally safe hydrogen and environmentally safe ammonia. In his opinion, Czech companies can also make a great contribution here with their experience.

Besides, the minister noted that the Czech Republic is looking forward to developing cooperation in the railroad sector with Azerbaijan,

"The construction of the Azerbaijani part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad was the peak of Czech companies' participation in this project. About 10 companies from the Czech Republic took part in it. It was a significant project for our economies. And this is a good basis for the development of similar projects in the future," he said.

Minister Sikela further noted that there are talks between the Azerbaijani side and one of the Czech producers of railway trains and subway trains to establish cooperation.

"There is a great interest from our side to deliver trains for the new metro line to Baku," he added.

As the minister noted, in general, the volume of business between the two countries has increased significantly in recent years.

"There has been a huge increase in exports from Azerbaijan to the Czech Republic - by 145 per cent. Czech exports to Azerbaijan were slightly lower - increasing by about 50 per cent. At our meetings with Azerbaijan's economy and energy ministers, we agreed that we are like-minded countries, share similar values and want to continue expanding mutual business ties," Sikela added.

He also noted that during the talks with Azerbaijani officials, the sides agreed to hold the next steering committee meeting in Baku, and it was planned to bring a large delegation of Czech businessmen to discuss future cooperation opportunities.

Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic cooperate in different spheres of the economy. Around 30 companies with Czech capital operate in Azerbaijan.  

It should be noted that Czech imports from Azerbaijan consist of oil (almost 25 per cent of all oil imports to the Czech Republic), cotton, dried fruits and nuts.

The trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $293 million in the first quarter of 2023, of which $270.78 million (5.49 per cent) came from exports to the Czech Republic and $22.8 million from imports (2.81 per cent).