'Sea Breeze' to host 5,000 guests for $5.2 million – OCCRP

Ahead of the COP29 climate change conference, Azerbaijan is using the event to improve the image of its authoritarian government. This is what the OCCRP (Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project), a European association of journalists and researchers on the corruption of government officials around the world, said in a report.

World leaders will soon gather on the Caspian Sea to discuss the future of the Earth at the COP29 climate summit, which Azerbaijan is hosting this year.

‘Azerbaijan is the most authoritarian country ever to host the event, surpassing even Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, according to a ranking by human rights organisation 'Freedom House.'

For years, the OCCRP has worked with local journalists to expose how the country's small elite have enriched themselves at the expense of the people. Whether it was mining, banking, hospitality or construction, there was hardly a major industry in Azerbaijan that they did not dominate,’ the report said.

According to the OCCRP report, the owner of the Sea Breeze resort complex won a $5.2 million government contract to host 5,000 COP29 guests on the shores of the Caspian Sea.

Note that the COP29's corporate partners also include 'PASHA Holdings', 'Azersun Holding', 'Silk Way West Airlines', and 'GILTEX'.  All these companies have large orders for servicing COP29.