Turkish Albayrak Holding ready to participate in expansion of Port of Baku – logistics director

By Trend

Turkish Albayrak Holding stands ready to participate in the expansion of the Port of Baku, Director of Logistics at the Albayrak Group in Azerbaijan Harun Oncu said in an interview with Trend.

According to him, relevant negotiations between Albayrak and the Baku International Sea Trade Port are already underway.

"We're holding negotiations in this regard. After reaching a mutual agreement, Albayrak's funds would be allocated. Albayrak is also closely cooperating with Azerbaijan's Small and Medium Business Development Agency (SMBDA) and planning to implement a joint project with the agency in the foreseeable future," he noted.

Oncu added that Albayrak and the Port of Baku are expected to build a joint terminal for mineral fertilizers.

"In accordance with the agreement, Albayrak will manage the Ro-Ro terminal operations. I'd like to note that we established an investment budget of $30 million at the first stage of cooperation with the Port. A total of $4 million were directed to installing a mobile container transshipment crane. Of course, the investment amount will increase as cooperation expands and new projects emerge," he said.

The director reminded that the company runs the seaports of a number of countries.

"Albayrak's projects in Azerbaijan, the country with a growing economy and logistics center for loads from Central Asia, create additional investment opportunities. Albayrak is supposed to make great contributions to the development of Azerbaijan and its economy," he stated.

Oncu emphasized that the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) is one of the relevant routes for the freight traffic from east to west.

"Albayrak has invested not only in the Azerbaijani section, but also the TITR neighboring countries to further develop the corridor. We're making every effort to increase the route potential," he stressed.

Oncu added that Albayrak is ready to support Azerbaijan in the recovery of the liberated territories.