BAKU, Azerbaijan, Dec. 23
By Eldar Janashvili - Trend:
The Azerbaijani market can be an interesting route for grain supplies to the Middle East, Head of Ukraine Office of the AgriCensus agency (UK) Tom Houghton told Trend.
Speaking about the possibility of turning Azerbaijan into a transit country on the world grain market, Houghton said that, given the size of the Azerbaijani market, providing access to this market is unlikely to be a top priority for exporters outside the region.
Nevertheless, the country is well located as a transshipment hub and can be an attractive route for grain supplies to the Middle East, the analyst said.
Iran is likely to return to the market soon and the fleet the Caspian Sea ships may not be able to manage the volumes. Thus, land routes are one way to overcome the expected difficulties, and exactly in this role, Azerbaijan can provide its services.
Touching upon the future role Azerbaijan's in the world grain market, Houghton said that several promising projects are currently being implemented in the country.
It will be good if the yield and seeding areas increase, which will allow Azerbaijan to sell part of its surplus products to neighbors, Houghton concluded.
In the first 11 months of 2019, 3.5 million tons of grain and cereal crops were grown in Azerbaijan.
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