Davos: President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan engaged in discussions with Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, and Adebayo Ogunlesi, Founding Partner, Chairman, and CEO of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), in Davos. The meeting focused on enhancing cooperative efforts between Azerbaijan’s State Oil Fund (SOFAZ) and BlackRock, as well as exploring investment prospects in Azerbaijan’s infrastructure sector.
According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the discussions underscored the importance of a Memorandum of Intent aimed at fostering long-term collaboration between SOFAZ, BlackRock, and GIP. This agreement seeks to sustain their existing partnership through a strategic framework and explore potential investments in Azerbaijan via an international infrastructure investment platform. SOFAZ is considering capital commitments of up to $1.5 billion over the next three to four years into infrastructure funds managed by GIP, along with joint investment endeavors.
The cooperation will involve assessments of potential investment opportunities in Azerbaijan, particularly in data centers and infrastructure to meet regional cloud and artificial intelligence demand. Additionally, it will explore partnership opportunities in airport infrastructure, leveraging GIP’s expertise in operations and management. The focus is on infrastructure assets within Azerbaijan or related to the country, a key direction of the collaboration.
The Memorandum of Intent aims to bolster SOFAZ’s position in the global investment landscape, expand cooperation with international partners, and create long-term investment opportunities in Azerbaijan’s critical infrastructure sectors. At the meeting’s conclusion, a ceremony marked the exchange of the Memorandum of Intent with President Aliyev in attendance.