Azernews.Az

By Nigar Abbasova

Baku hosted the 11th meeting of the Azerbaijan-Iran State Commission on economic, trade and humanitarian spheres, as well as an Azerbaijan-Iran business forum on December 27.

The meeting and business forum took place as part of a visit of Iranian delegation led by Iran’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology Mahmoud Vaezi to Azerbaijan. Vaezi is expected to visit Nakhchivan on the third day of his Azerbaijan trip. Governor General of East Azerbaijan Province Esmail Jabbarzadeh and Ardabil Province Governor General Majid Khodabakhsh are accompanying Vaezi during the visit.

The events became a stage for the discussion of a number of issues, which are economically important for both Azerbaijan and Iran.

Pharmaceuticals plant in Pirallahi

The creation of the joint Azerbaijan-Iran pharmaceutical plant, which is expected to be built in Pirallahi Industrial Park, was high on agenda during the meeting. Azerbaijan’s Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev addressing the event said that a foundation stone for the plant will be laid in January 2017. Some $30 million will be invested in the joint venture.

The necessary medicines will be imported from Iran to Azerbaijan within the first stage, while Iran will provide all necessary technology for the production of drugs in the second stage of the project, production of medicines will be launched at the third stage. The implementation of these three stages will take around 3 to 5 years.

Iran’s Darou Pakhsh Pharma Chem Company, the largest pharmaceutical company of Iran earlier signed a MoU with Azerbaijan Investment Company (AIC) and Azersun Holding. Some 49 percent of share in the capital of the JV will belong to the Iranian side, while the rest part is expected to be shared between AIC (25 percent) and Azersun Holding (26 percent). The plant to be commissioned within 2 years is expected to produce some 90 types of medicines, including drugs for cardiovascular diseases, infectious and noninfectious diseases, as well as different types of antibiotics and anesthetics.

Azerbaijan sees the pharmaceutical manufacturing as one of the major directions to diversify the non-oil sector of the economy. Taking into account the profitability of pharmaceutical sector, the government is keen to cooperate with foreign companies in this direction. Iran with its modern pharmaceutical system has 100-year experience in this sector.

Heavy Industry

The sides have also held discussions on the allocation of the area for the construction of Tabriz tractor manufacturing plant within the territory of Netchala industrial district. Besides, Mustafayev mentioned that a work is underway on the construction the Azerbaijani-Iranian car plant. A groundbreaking ceremony for the plant was held in Neftchala industrial district in August 2016.The total cost of the plant is $15 million, while some 25 percent of the cost will be provided by the Iranian side. The plant, which is a joint project of Azerbaijan’s AzEuroCar LLC and Iran’s giant automaker, Iran Khodro, will cover an area of 10 hectares.

The plant is expected to provide jobs for 300 people at the first stage, with the further increase up to 500. Twenty percent of the produced cars will be exported. The cars produced at the plant will meet Euro 5 standard. Four Iranian car brands – Dena, Runna, Soren and Samand will be produced at the new plant, which will have a capacity of 10,000 cars a year.

Simplified Visa regime

Mustafayev said that Azerbaijan plans to significantly simplify the visa regime for Iran’s citizens in 2017. Starting from January 10, 2017, Iranian citizens will be able to register visas for entry into Azerbaijan via the ASAN Viza system, as a result of which, they will be able to obtain visas within three days.

Some 18 flights are operated from Iran to Azerbaijan on a monthly basis, while the interest of Iranian tourists in the country is growing steadily. The Islamic Republic has repeatedly voiced its intention to cancel visa regime with Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan currently issues 2 types of visas, including entry and transit visas to foreigners and stateless people. A single-entry visa allows only one entry-exit to the country within the period, while a multiple entry visa is valid for 2 years. This visa type allows a person to enter and exit the country several times within relevant period.

A period of staying in the country is limited by a validity period of a visa, which becomes invalid if it is not used during its validity period. Azerbaijani citizens currently have visa-free or visa on arrival access to some 62 countries and territories. Citizens of Iran can obtain a 15 days visa on arrival only for Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.

On June 1, 2016, president of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on simplification of e-visas issuance procedure and the creation of the ASAN Viza system. Visas will be issued through a single online portal within three days without applying to state organizations.

Agriculture

The Islamic Republic also offers Azerbaijan to expand relations in agriculture, as the two countries have ample opportunities to expand cooperation in the field. Vaezi said that Azerbaijan and Iran can develop a mutual use of agricultural lands, as well as jointly export agricultural products to third countries. He added that the countries can also jointly produce various agro-technologies.

Moreover, the Iranian minister offered the Azerbaijani side to mutually export and import agricultural products at advantageous prices, mentioning that the sides have already created a trade committee and determined a list of goods exported and imported by the two countries.

Also, National Confederation of Entrepreneurs Organizations of Azerbaijan (ASK) has signed a MoU on mutual cooperation with Iran's Chamber of Commerce Industries Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), on the sidelines of the forum.

Trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Iran amounted to $175 million in January to November 2016, $130.13 million of which accounted for the import from Iran, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan. The country's exports to Iran almost doubled to $14.4 million in the first quarter of 2016, while imports increased from $19.4 million in 2015 to $27 million in 2016.

Transport

The meeting also discussed the second stage of the implementation of the ambitious North-South transport corridor. Mustafayev said that the first stage of implementation is drawing to a close, mentioning that the work on the construction of railway till Iranian border, as well as the construction of the railroad bridge over the Astarachay River will finish soon. Tehran plans to complete the Iran-Azerbaijan railway’s Astara (Iran)-Astara (Azerbaijan) segment over the next three months.

The construction of the bridge, which forms the border between the two similarly-named towns of Astara in Azerbaijan and Iran, was launched in April 2016. The bridge, which is funded and built jointly by the two countries under the terms of an inter-governmental agreement, bears strategic importance, as it will serve as a connector of railways of Azerbaijan and Iran. The facility will be an integral part of the Astara (Azerbaijan) - Astara (Iran) railway, which is part of the North-South international transport corridor.

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Nigar Abbasova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @nigyar_abbasova

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