Muscat to visit Azerbaijan in April

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat will be visiting Azerbaijan late next month, Azeri state news agency APA reports.

The purpose of the visit is for the 3rd Global Shared Societies Forum in Baku, the State Committee for Work with Diaspora told APA.

Muscat will also have meetings with Azeri officials.

The President of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev will also attend.

This will be Muscat's second visit to Azerbaijan, after having signed a memorandum of understanding with the oil rich nation in a meeting that did not include accompanying press from Malta. The MOU has yet to be published.

Muscat's delegation comprised chief of staff Keith Schembri, spokesperson Kurt Farrugia and energy minister Konrad Mizzi, ostensibly to discuss long-term gas supplies for the LNG power plant that ElectroGas will construct at Delimara.

The Southern Gas Corridor will allow Europe to diversify its hydrocarbon supply sources and strengthen energy security and also will allow Azerbaijan to obtain a new market in Europe.

His visit coincides with controversy over energy minister Konrad Mizzi's 'direction' to Enemalta to include Azeri state oil company SOCAR, an ElectroGas partner, in suppliers' lists for hedging on fuel products. The six-month hedge on unleaded petrol and diesel was undermined by a drastic fall in oil prices, leading to hedging losses of €5.5 million by the end of 2014.