Four vice-presidents of Azerbaijan’s oil giant SOCAR have been dismissed in a presidential order signed on July 19.
The dismissals reduced the number of SOCAR’s vice presidents to eight.
Under the new order, the company’s vice president for Refining David Mammadov, vice president for Strategic Development Tofig Garhramanov, vice president for Geology and Geophysics Bahram Huseynov and vice oresident Mikayil Ismayilov (his curation has not been specified) have been dismissed. Mammadov and Huseynov had served as SOCAR’s vice presidents 16 years.
The reason for dismissals has not been specified.
It should be noted that last year, President Ilham Aliyev slammed SOCAR for using the state budget rather than its own revenues to implement projects – even for extending gas lines to homes.
In a government session on August 6, Aliyev said that $58.8 million have been allocated from the state budget for gas lines to be extended to villages.
“If the state does all this, then what is the state company doing? After all, this is its job and its duty,” Aliyev questioned.
Other state-funded companies such as national flag carrier Azerbaijan Airlines, Azerbaijan Railways and electricity producer AzerEnergy were also criticized by Aliyev as being wasteful and unprofitable. Aliyev said that they operate according to a “socialist economic model” and “drag down” the economy.
