“This (deal) is part of our strategy of competing for market share. Control over logistics gives advantages … when implementing trading strategies,” Arzu Azimov, the Geneva-based head of SOCAR Trading, told Reuters.
The deal, which was closed last month, gives SOCAR access to two Suezmax-class tankers with deadweight of 140,000 tonnes each and five Aframax-class tankers with 80,000 tonnes capacity each.
SOCAR bought the seven tankers from Turkey-based Palmali, one of the biggest shippers in the Caspian region, Azimov said.
Azimov and a Palmali representative would not comment on the value of the deal.
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