LUK MODEL OF COOPERATION

Year 2006 is expected to become very significant for developing all the facilities of political-economic relationsa between Russia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani-Russian summit and the second economic forum took place in February in Baku stimulated the relations. The leader of Russian oil business Lukoil OJSC is of great importance in all these processes of mutually beneficial regional partnership, celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, and it is deeply symbolic.

Commonness of history, common interests

Russian and Azerabaijani peoples have been living in peace, friendly and good-neighbor conditions for about 300 years. And close mutually beneficial relations in all spheres of cooperation have been established and strengthened within these years, which Russia President Vladimir Putin highly appreciated during his February visit to Baku:

«Russian-Azerbaijan relations are on very high level and are developing dynamically. It concerns the political sphere of our interaction, and the economy, and the humanitarian relations as well».

Speaking about the level of contemporary Azerbaijani-Russian cooperation President Ilham Aliev also emphasized that «today the relations between Russia and Azerbaijan can serve as an example of relations between neighbors. Our relations – are good-neighborly, sincere, friendly. And it gives an opportunity to cooperate actively on all directions and establishes very good conditions for implementing major investment projects, for developing economic relations between our countries».

The high appreciations of Russian and Azerbaijani political leaders are guided by the weighty facts of contemporary political-economic realities. It is enough to say that in 2005 the commodity circulation between two counties rose by 40% and exceeded the signed grade by 1 billion dollars. And as it has been noted several times, it is only intermediate phase, and there will be a new signed limit – 2 billion dollars of mutual commodity circulation a year.

At the same time Russian-Azerbaijani cooperation in TEC sphere takes leading positions in economic relations of two countries as usual. Lukoil is an absolute investment leader of Russian-Azerbaijani cooperation, it takes part in two Caspian hydrocarbon projects of Azerbaijan – development of the gaseous condensate field Shah Deniz and perspective block D-222. The strategic goal of the leader of Russian oil business – Lukoil OJSC, that the president of the company Vahid Alekperov has made for about 150 thousands Lukoil collective, is – to enter the world elite of power giants providing with energy resources not only the population of its own country, but the half part of the world.

Today Lukoil is functioning in 37 countries of the world, and Azerbaijan was the first government in the South Caucasus where Lukoil's flag appeared, Lukoil has taken strongly the leading positions in several sectors of economy. These are telecommunication, banking, multi0media and a number of other dominant markets. However the oil product market was the first sphere of Lukoil's integration cooperation with Azerbaijani enterprises, which had not only economic significance, but also historical traditions for the republic.

And today Lukoil shows not only world standards of servicing in Azerbaijan, but also serves as a sample of mutually beneficial regional economic partnership, providing Azerbaijani consumers and international truck men working on the transport routes North-South and East-West with high quality oil products.

Lukoil-Azerbaijan – is world standards of filling complexes.

Opening of the first FC of Lukoil-Azerbaijan company in Baku in 1995 had a great significance for developing multiline activity of Lukoil OJSC in Azerbaijan, Russian-Azerbaijani economic cooperation, and establishing a system of modern filling complexes. The manufacturing equipment of the complex produced by the leading producers of the world met all the world servicing and ecological standards and became an original leading light for the local companies functioning in the second oil products market.

At present 21 FC of Lukoil-Azerbaijan are functioning in Azerbaijan and meeting the highest requirements of the consumers. The high quality automotive fuel, motor oil, technical services of Lukoil FC are at the clients service.

The management systems of industrial and ecological security and protection of labour fully corresponding the international standard ISO 14001 and the standard OHSAS 18001 have been established and are functioning successfully in Lukoil-Azerbaijan CJSC. As a result, the FC of Lukoil-Azerbaijan – is not only perfect servicing and excellent fuel, but also an ecosystem kept for the future generations.

The only competitions in Azerbaijan of professional skill promoting professional improvement, increasing the level of servicing, and the standard of servicing also support Lukoil-Azerbaijan collective in keeping the high mark of Lukoil FC.

Belonging to Lukoil means the best

Having opened its first FC in Baku in 1995 providing the clients with the best services in the country, Lukoil-Azerbaijan company was providing the car owners with the best petrol, Diesel oil, special oils and etc.

The problem of high quality characteristic of the oils sold in Lukoil-Azerbaijan FC was solved fundamentally and cardinally. The high quality of Lukoil oils have made them one of the leaders of the oil market of Azerbaijan. Lukoil-Azerbaijan CJSC constrcuted its own fuel depository in Baku for more quality assurance of the sold automotive fuel and Diesel oil. Thereby, the high-precision system of accounting and control of the got and released oil products dosing till the tenth portion of a litre supplied by Azerican company Fisher Rosemount was applied just to Lukoil-Azerbaijan CJSC fuel depository first in Azerbaijan.

Thereby, as Lukoil FC, Lukoil-Azerbaijan CJSC depository has also become one of the best in the country on the level of servicing, the process parameters of the established equipment and professional training of the technical personnel.

The president of Lukoil OJSC Vahid Alekperov clearly and laconically expressed the substance of the problems solved by the Company in the result of setting this new Lukoil object in operation: «We have made the next step in developing the system of filling complexes of Lukoil in Azerbaijan. We are sure the car owners will be sure of getting high quality fuel in Lukoil FC». Appreciating the appearance of such depository in the country, the president of SOCAR Natig Aliev (the minister of industry and power engineering at present) noted the beauty and well organization of the new Lukoil object. «Already the first Lukoil FC in Baku has become a significant example characterizing the investment policy of the Russian oil company in Azerbaijan», - he emphasized. Indeed, Lukoil invests its money not only in oil riches development of Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea, but also in the infrasturcture of the country, market relations are regularly established in the country, the monopoly on any kinds of economic activity is disappearing. That, of course, positively affect opening the new places of employment , the quality improvement and decline in value of the products and services sold in domestic market

The goal – is integration and success

Azerbaijan is situated on ther cross of two main transport corridors: North-South and East-West. A significant part of the passengers and cargo is transported on these routes by motor transport. So Lukoil FC on the motor routes conecting Baku, Sumgait, Ganja to regional centers of Russia (northern route), Georgia and Turkey (western route) have a great importance for providing undisturbed operation of the transport corridors North-South and East-West. In other words, if the trade convoys moved in the same Great Silk Way from a base to a base hundreds years ago, today the routes of highway freighters run from one Lukoil FC to another, where the reliable and skilled Lukoil specialists serve the truck men in cold and hot weather.

There are more than 560 such good workmen in Lukoil-Azerbaijan CKSC. The company has opned places of employment for these people, and trained most of them. Due to social partnership of the administration and trade-union organization of Lukoil-Azerbaijan CJSC these people have a number of important labor preferences, guaranted leaves, preferences for sanatoriums and recreation houses, efficient support in solution of any social problems. But the company is not going to hold on achieved, it has a big and productive works on carrying out the issues put by time. The number of these issues is not small. In fact, as the president of Lukoil OJSC Vahid Alekperov stated, «due to Heydar Aliev's and the current president of the country Ilham Aliev's wise policy Azerbaijan has been and is a reliable partner of Russia on the international arena.i am sure that our countries will keep on political, economic and cultural approaching under the direction of spirited and goal-seeking leaders – Russian president Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliev».

And the leader of Russian oil business – Lukoil OJSC was, is and will be one of the locomotives of Azerbaijani-Russian political-economic cooperation.