OREANDA-NEWS. August 10, 2012. SOCAR officials met with the delegation of Mississippi Senate.

Warmly welcoming the guests, SOCAR first vice president, academician Khoshbakht Yusifzadeh spoke about the economic development of the Republic of Azerbaijan which is in the focus of world's attention for its high development rate and the role of the country's oil and gas industry in this development.

He noted that the State Oil Company, which is the flagship of Azerbaijan's economy, has longstanding useful cooperation with the leading US oil and gas companies. Yusifzadeh said that oil production in Azerbaijan has a rich history and Baku oil workers gave a plenty of contributions to the world's oil industry and as far back as Soviet period they discovered large oil and gas fields in the different national sectors of the Caspian Sea and founded oil industry throughout the former USSR. He also informed that first industrial oil wells were drilled in Bibiheybat in 1847, then in Balakhani. In 1901, Azerbaijan produced 11.5 mln tones of oil making more than fifty percent of the world's oil production. Azerbaijani oil workers played an exceptional role in the victory over fascism during the Great Patriotic War. Azerbaijan was a pioneer of offshore oil production in the world. In 1949, ''Neft Dashlari'' (Oil Stones) field was discovered on the Caspian Sea. Yusifzadeh spoke in details about the investment projects carried out by SOCAR inside the country and abroad. Azerbaijan has rich hydrocarbon resources and economic effectiveness is a guiding element in the natural gas export. Azerbaijan's oil strategy was founded by national leader Heydar Aliyev and is successfully developed by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. SOCAR official also gave detailed information about the regional projects and diversified oil and gas pipelines system for the transportation of Azerbaijan-produced hydrocarbons to the world market.

Mississippi Senator Hillman Frazier thanked SOCAR leadership for invitation and high-level meeting and spoke about the friendly and strategic relations between Azerbaijan and the United States and underlined the development of this relationship in recent years. Frazier emphasized the importance of such visits for intensive communication between the peoples. He introduced the delegation of Mississippi Senate to SOCAR officials and said Mississippi had close and wide relations with Azerbaijan. Informing about the geographical, economic, social and cultural factors of the state, the guest invited SOCAR officials to visit Mississippi.

Mississippi Senators said they would hold a series of important meetings in Azerbaijan. Then the guests and SOCAR officials exchanged souvenirs.