Azerbaijan's SOCAR holds foreign borrowing limit at $1.5bn
Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR retains a credit debt at a level of $1.5 billion, the company's Vice President, Suleyman Gasimov, told Trend news agency on Wednesday.
"Recently, in accordance with the repayment schedule, we returned 42 million euros to the Dutch banking group ING. Prior to that we paid back loans to French bank BNP Paribas and Germany's Deutsche Bank. So this level is controlled and we try to adhere to the covenant," Gasimov said.
He said, over the past three months, the state oil company has again attracted loans from the Deutsche Bank, CNBC, JP Morgan - each worth about 100 million euros.
Gasimov said earlier, SOCAR may need $500 million by the end of the year, $130 million of which is needed for the construction of a new refinery. The remaining funds will be used for the domestic needs of the company and other projects implemented by SOCAR abroad in Switzerland, Ukraine and Georgia.
The limit of foreign debt for SOCAR is $2 billion which the company will follow for six months on the basis of the covenant in the loan agreement with BNP Paribas. The liabilities of the company can not exceed this limit until full repayment of the loan portfolio of the bank.
"These restrictions ($2 billion) do not apply to the entire group of SOCAR companies, but only to the Azneft production association, two refineries in Azerbaijan, the marketing department and economic operations, as well as SOCAR's main office," the company's vice president said previously.
Gasimov said currently the credit portfolio of these companies is $1.5 billion, of which more than $500 million accounted for Eurobonds, 500 million manat - the remainder of the state debt, and the rest is accounted for BNP Paribas, Natixis and Yapi Kredi Bank.
SOCAR is the only oil producer in the country. It owns two refinery plants as well as gas stations in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine and Romania. In addition the state oil company acquired a retail network in Switzerland. It is also co-owner of the largest Turkish petrochemical complex Petkim and recently acquired Itera Georgia.