After the discovery of oil fields, Baku became a special place, where various economic and political interests of international coalitions, industrial clans and leaders were concentrated and clashed. VK begins publishing chapters from the book by Ismail Agakishiev "History of the Baku Oil Industry and the Second Oil Boom (second half of the 19th century - beginning of the 20thcentury)" The book presents a historical analysis of the emergence and current state of the Azerbaijani oil industry.
There are several legends in the scholarship regarding the extent of benefit to Azerbaijan provided by the conditions of the contract. That is why, in my opinion, it is especially important to analyze these conditions in terms of benefits to Azerbaijan. Reserves in the three fields were expected to amount to 511 million tons of oil and 70 billion cubic meters of natural gas. According to documents, 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas (associated gas) were not included in the financial evaluation of the contract. However, according to the contract, a special contract regarding natural gas was to be signed later between the SOCAR consortium and the leadership of Azerbaijan.
Heydar Aliyev realized that at that time the contract was a compromise between the yet not fully-developed state and the sharks of world capitalism. However, after studying the entire period of production of Baku oil, the realistic historian Aliyev realized that Azerbaijan has never been a master of its own black gold (the share of Azerbaijani businessmen in the Baku oil industry in Tsarist Russia was only about 5%, while oil was a common heritage in the Soviet Union during the Soviet era) and that Azerbaijan for the first time was offered a real opportunity to enhance state independence in the economic as well as the political sphere.
Later, Aliyev recalled: "After looking at the past history of the oil industry of the Republic of Azerbaijan, taking into account the 20-year experience in management of the oil industry of Azerbaijan, taking into consideration the real state of today's oil industry of the former Soviet Union, I made a decision and gave the order to sign the contract. I took on a great responsibility and I am willing to be held responsible today as well as tomorrow."
According to Heydar Aliyev, the foundation for the "Contract of the Century" was laid in February 1994 during his visit to Britain, where an agreement was signed between the two countries on cooperation in the energy field. But Azerbaijan had to go a long way from the intention to sign the contract and overcome great difficulties. The UK, demonstrating its inherent validity in calculations and at the same time its readiness to face risks, was the first foreign power to enter into the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea. BP and Statoil were the most active members of the international oil consortium. As noted by T. Eggar, "the British take pride in outstripping the United States in developing the land and sea fields in Azerbaijan." Later, Eggar headed the English-Azerbaijani Friendship Society in the UK.
Another significant factor in the signing of the contract was that the Republic of Azerbaijan acquired new partners, supporting it in political terms. On September 20th 1994, the UK Energy Minister said: "We used to be opposite parties in negotiations, but now we are full partners and guarantors in the implementation of the contract." Developing this idea, Heydar Aliyev stated: "we are allies on the state level as well." Before the signing of the contract,
negotiators stressed the need for a just solution to the Karabakh problem, and later they began to separate this issue from energy cooperation. The US delegation on the signing of the contract was headed by the deputy US secretary of energy, William White. The contract had both economic and political significance for the United States.
The oil companies that signed the contract had great weight in the world. They played a significant role in the economy and in shaping the domestic and foreign policies of their countries. On September 20th 1994, William White, speaking in Baku, said: "You have invited the biggest international companies to sign the contract. Naturally, these companies have a huge impact on their own countries. Everyone remembers the current difficulties. We will overcome these problems together, and the companies will be able to solve technical problems on their own. The contract provides greater scope for mutual cooperation."
Originally it was planned to reorganize the machine industry of Azerbaijan. As acknowledged by White, the experience of American companies producing equipment for oil production could be used in this regard. The signing of the contract and its implementation would certainly lead to positive changes in the whole region. White noted: "We believe that the project will lay the foundation for a new era in this region of the world."
Azerbaijan attached particular importance to cooperation with Russia. Back in October 1993, the governments of the two countries signed an agreement on cooperation in Baku. Russia was represented by a large delegation headed by the head of the Directorate of the Ministry of Fuel and Energy of the country. There was hope that "this historic event will strengthen the relations between Russia and Azerbaijan."
US president Bill Clinton, British Prime Minister John Major and the President of Turkey Suleyman Demirel sent congratulatory telegrams to Heydar Aliyev in connection with the signing of the contract. The population of the republic of Azerbaijan endorsed the conclusion of the contract with successful companies in Western Europe and the USA. For 70 years, the Soviet Union had tried to catch up with and overrun these countries, but, unfortunately, it did not succeed in doing so in all areas. In the minds of the former Soviet people who failed to build communism, these countries were a "real paradise", with enormous financial and technological capabilities. People thought that cooperation with major oil companies would automatically lead to the prosperity of their own country. Heydar Aliyev noted: "We are completely convinced that cooperation with the countries with developed market economies will lead to the creation of a strong, prosperous Azerbaijan."
