Igor Nasirov: “Azerbaijan does its best to make its petrochemical industry maximally profitable”

Petrochemical and Refining Congress: Russia and CIS 2018 has opened in Moscow today. Vestnik Kavkaza interviewed Igor Nasirov, the Development Director of ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions. The expert told about prospects of petrochemistry development in the Russian market and international cooperation in the sphere.

-          How do you assess importance of annul PRC Russia & CIS?

-          In recent 5 years, the number of such events halved. Even today’s congress has a specific format and focused on experts, according to the organizing side. It is important that the congress is not about advertising. It’s a platform for sharing views and a joint work of experts who discuss prospects of business and industry development. The congress plays a big role which hasn’t been taken by anyone earlier. It has appeared right in time because today we – both the country and industry – need make a burst in development. PRC Russia & CIS encourages this.

-          What are current prospects of petrochemistry development in Russia?

-          Our prospects are huge. This year, several companies have already demonstrated highest results. Some of them are preparing IPO. The government actively supports petroleum chemistry and gas-to-chemicals. Today we believe in the industry and in petrochemistry’s margin which is more than 20 per cent not only in Russia but also in the whole world. It is much bigger than oil refinery’s margin. There are a few industries in the economy, which allow making huge money due to innovations and technologies. Petrochemistry is a rare industry where Russia has a decent raw-material base and significant human resources to boost the sphere.

-          Who cooperates with Russia in petrochemistry today?

-          Russian companies have many partners all over the world. These are Asian companies, including Japanese, South Korean, and Chinese ones, and European companies who are interested in Russian raw materials and the Russian market. I work for ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions. As an engineering company, equipment supplier, and licenser, we have been working in Russia for more than 200 years. We are open for granting modern technologies to Russian companies and are ready to support them financially.

-          What CIS countries make the biggest progress in petrochemistry today?

-          Of course Russia is the leader in the sphere. However, Belarus also develops petrochemistry and thinks about gas-to-chemicals industry, according to its resources and opportunities. Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan do the same. All countries that have raw materials – oil and gas – try to develop petrochemical industry because it is profitable and creates new jobs. Azerbaijan implements major projects both in gas and oil spheres, including turning gas into fertilizers and turning oil into petrochemicals, polypropylene, and polyethylene. Considering its raw-material base, Azerbaijan does its best to make its petrochemical industry and oil refinery maximally profitable.