BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 15. Azerbaijan's foreign direct investments in the oil and gas sector reached $4.2 billion in the first half of 2026, Director of the Statistics Department at the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA), Samir Nasirov, said at a briefing dedicated to the release of balance of payments data today, Trend's correspondent reports from the event.
According to Nasirov, the total volume of the country's foreign direct investments amounted to $5 billion, and the net outflow of direct investments abroad $4.4 billion.
"The oil and gas sector accounted for $4.2 billion of the direct investments made abroad," he explained.
He noted that the primary factor driving this figure was the acquisition in May of a 99.85% stake in Italiana Petroli, one of Italy's leading private energy and fuel distribution companies.
"The acquisition of this stake was valued at approximately 3 billion euro, or $3.2–3.3 billion," the CBA official added.
According to Nasirov, a total of $3.6 billion in foreign direct investment was attracted to the Azerbaijani economy in the first half of 2026.
"Of these investments, $2.8 billion was directed to the oil and gas sector, while $877 million went to the non-oil and non-energy sectors," he mentioned.
The CBA official pointed out that alternative sectors, including renewable energy projects, are assessed within the framework of the non-oil sector.
The transport surplus in the services balance has reached $941 million.
Nasirov also announced that Azerbaijan's services balance has traditionally shown a deficit.
"The primary reason for the deficit in the services balance is the import of construction and other professional services from abroad for the oil and gas sector and other fields," he emphasized.
According to him, however, there are two key areas within the services balance that demonstrate a stable and growing surplus: transport services and tourism services.
"The surplus in transport services remains a priority area. During the reporting period, this figure rose by approximately 10%, reaching $941 million," Nasirov said.
He noted that the Middle Corridor is not the sole driver of growth in transport services. "Freight transport and transit services provided to non-residents—including tariff revenues—within the framework of the Southern Gas Corridor and Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan projects play a primary role in this increase. High oil and gas prices also facilitate the growth of these revenues," the CBA official added.
Nasirov also noted that a surplus has been maintained in tourism services.
"Although a slight decline in the number of tourists visiting the country has been observed, a surplus in the tourism balance has been preserved. Based on the results of the six-month period, the surplus in tourism services amounted to $47 million," he added.
