Sakova: We See Huge Opportunities for Slovak Companies in Azerbaijan

Baku, May 7 (TASR-correspondent) - Energy, imports of mineral raw materials, the defence industry and information and communications technologies are the main areas in which Slovak and Azerbaijani companies can cooperate, stated Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD) on Tuesday at the opening of a business forum in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, on Tuesday. Sakova is a member of the delegation of Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) on an official working trip to the country. "Azerbaijan is one of the reformist countries of the South Caucasus. We see here huge opportunities for Slovak companies to cooperate in the development of Azerbaijan because economic growth here is rather high," said Sakova, who also met Azerbaijan's Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov on this occasion. In the field of energy, she mentioned, for example, the signing of a memorandum between Slovak companies, Slovakia's Export-Import Bank (Eximbanka) and Azerbaijan on the construction of small hydro-electric power plants. "From Slovakia's point of view, it also concerns imports of mineral raw materials, the defence industry, information and communications technologies, the construction of a smart village and other things that Azerbaijan is putting into its reform plans," said Sakova. The Slovak minister pointed out that Azerbaijan plays a relatively significant role in gas diversification for central and eastern Europe. "We firmly believe that we'll be able to establish contacts and cooperation in the field of gas supplies to Slovakia and to eastern and central Europe. Neighbouring countries, including Austria, the Czech Republic and Hungary, are also interested. We'll make every effort to import gas from Azerbaijan to Slovakia and thus diversify supplies and cut ourselves off from Russian gas," stated the minister, adding that Azerbaijan plans to increase gas production further in the future. am/df