SOFAZ's reserves to reach $10 billion by 2008, says Executive Director

The supplement contains an article elaborating on the Azerbaijan State Oil Fund's activity as well, APA reports.

"The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ), created in 1999, will play a key role to manage efficiently oil revenues. SOFAZ collects all oil income tied to production sharing agreements (PSAs) in the Caspian and allocates funds to support infrastructure, education, power plants and logistics facilities," the article on "The Economy" part of the supplement reads out.

The article quotes Shahmar Movsumov, the Executive Director of the State Oil Fund: "We have two main missions: manage our assets to guarantee macroeconomic stability, and manage our investments to diversify the economy and generate employment for future generations. We have to make the oil money last forever," says Shahmar Movsumov, Executive Director of SOFAZ.

The 31-year-old Harvard graduate is conscious of the pivotal role SOFAZ can play in investment policies and the day-to-day economy: "Our reserves total $1.6 billion today and will reach $10 billion by 2008. Can you imagine all that money going into a small economy like ours?"

According to the supplement, with its heavy reliance on the energy sector, Azerbaijan can set an example in the region.

"It already has, arguably, by signing the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI)."