Proportion of President’s Daughters in Gold Mines to Be Purchased by State

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree "On some measures in the field of study, research, exploration and mining of the ore deposits Garadag, Chovdar, Geydag and Dagkesemen and the fields Kohnemedan in the Kurekchay Basin in the Republic of Azerbaijan". It is about the purchase of the share of foreign companies in the development of these deposits by the state.

The document notes that the decision was made taking into account the intentions of the contractors to sell share participation in this agreement, approved by the Law of Azerbaijan Republic dated 5 June 2007. As a result of the assessment carried out in accordance with international practice, the economic rationality of the acquisition of those interests was confirmed and found available. The proposal came from the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources (MENR) of Azerbaijan.

President Aliyev instructed the Ministry of Economy, MENR and CJSC AzerGold to take the necessary measures in connection with the acquisition by the Closed Joint Stock Company AzerGold of the equity owned by the contractors.

In two months the President is to be submitted funding proposals for this procurement.

AzerGold after the purchase and sale is instructed to study, research, explored and develop the above-mentioned areas and ore deposits and manage them efficiently.

Note that the independent journalistic investigations revealed that the latest beneficiaries of several offshore companies participating in the agreement are direct members of the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s family, Leyla Aliyeva and Arzu Aliyeva.

In recent years, the development of these fields has been suspended, and debts on wages have been formed.

CJSC AzerGold was established in early 2015. Recently, its charter and structure were confirmed. However, it has not yet formed a tool of control and management.   ----08D