MOSCOW - Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR is considering resuming natural gas purchases from Russia’s Gazprom, SOCAR Vice President Elshad Nasirov said on Oct. 16, while cautioning that no volume or timetable had been agreed.
Nasirov made the remarks during Russian Energy Week in Moscow. He said the relationship between the two companies had included gas purchases, sales and seasonal exchange operations at different times, according to Interfax.
“We intend to resume gas purchases from Gazprom,” Nasirov said, according to a report by Vedomosti.
He did not state how much gas SOCAR might buy or when deliveries could begin. No price or other commercial terms were disclosed. The announcement therefore represents an intention to pursue purchases, not a signed contract or confirmation that supplies have restarted.
Azerbaijan produced 37.5213 billion cubic meters of natural gas in January through September, according to State Statistics Committee data released on Oct. 16 and cited by Report. Marketable gas accounted for 28.5813 billion cubic meters.
Total gas production fell 0.7% from the same period a year earlier, while marketable production declined 1.6%.
Those figures describe Azerbaijan’s domestic production but do not establish the reason for a possible deal with Gazprom. SOCAR has not publicly tied the proposal to a specific shortage, export commitment or other defined import requirement.
For now, the confirmed development is SOCAR’s stated interest in renewed purchases; the scale and timing of any Russian supplies remain open.