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Ilham Aliyev: Azerbaijan to mark production of 2 billion tons of oil this year

26 April 2017 16:45 (UTC +04:00)

Azerbaijan will mark the production of 2 billion tons of oil this year, said the country’s President Ilham Aliyev.

The president made the remarks during talks with oil workers as he viewed on Wednesday the newly reconstructed well in SOCAR's Bibiheybat field, the world’s first industrially drilled oil well.

"I have repeatedly said that Azerbaijan is the country where oil was for the first time extracted industrially, but its exact location was unknown. Therefore, I gave instructions to find the exact location. Of course, we knew it was in Bibiheybat area. Now its location has been specified, too. And a new beautiful monument was erected. I think that it’s a great event for both oil workers and tourists coming to our country,” said President Aliyev.

The head of state noted that Azerbaijan is the birthplace of oil.

"Today, after about 200 years, Azerbaijan is known as an oil and gas country worldwide. Our oil belongs to our people. At the time we were part of Tsarist Russia, and the natural resources extracted here did not exert such an influence on the life of our people. There was poverty. The Azerbaijani people possessed great wealth, but could not use this wealth. During the Soviet period, Azerbaijan also proved itself as an oil republic,” said Azerbaijan’s president.

President Aliyev hailed Azerbaijani oil workers’ decisive role in the victory over fascism.

“If during the Second World War there was no labor of Azerbaijani oil workers, the results of the war could be completely different. Azerbaijani oil workers played a decisive role in the victory over fascism,” said the president, adding. “This year we will celebrate the production of 2 billion tons of oil. Imagine, if Azerbaijan had at the time been an independent state, it would have been one of the richest countries in the world.”