Zakir Ibrahimov: “The gold coins produced for the promotion of the cultural heritage became an additional source of income for AzerGold”

On May 21, Zakir Ibrahimov, Chairman of the Executive Board of AzerGold Closed Joint-Stock Company (CJSC), gave a speech at the opening ceremony of the “Treasure” Museum Exhibition in Icherisheher, dedicated to jewelry art and numismatics samples of Azerbaijan.

Z.Ibrahimov emphasized that “Treasure”, organized on the initiative of Icherisheher State Historical-Architectural Reserve and support by AzerGold CJSC, is the first museum exhibition, dedicated to jewelry and numismatic samples of our country. He noted that the ancient jewelry samples and coins, as well as modern high-technology coins, which are the indicators of the economic power of Azerbaijan, are displayed in a single exhibition in mysterious Icherisheher, surrounded by historical walls. According to him, it reflects the respect for our national and cultural values, and also the importance of the preservation and promotion of our ancient national jewelry traditions: “The title of the museum exposition is not chosen by chance. Our historical and cultural heritage is the most valuable treasure we have.”

Mr Ibrahimov spoke about the activities of AzerGold CJSC for the development of the mining industry of our country and stated that the company takes various measures for the development of non-oil and gas sector in accordance with the economy diversification policy by Ilham Aliyev, President of the Azerbaijan Republic. AzerGold CJSC, which represents the mining industry, does its best for increasing the percentage of non-oil and gas sector in the gross domestic product and the export potential of our country: “AzerGold, as a leader among the state non-oil and gas sector exporters, has exported 412 thousand ounces of gold (12.8 tons), 785 thousand ounces of silver (24.4 tons) so far. In addition, 15 thousand ounces (0.5 tons) of gold and 100 thousand ounces (3.1 tons) of silver were sold in the local market. The total income exceeded 1 billion 232 million manats.”

The Chairman stated that the main goals of AzerGold CJSC are to contribute to environmental protection, socio-economic development and interact with the local communities. He said that the Company is organized based upon the modern challenges and in accordance with national and international legislation. According to his words, AzerGold takes necessary measures in the direction of green economy, digital transformation, application of innovative solutions, boosting the ecosystem; and other innovations are planned for future.

Mr Ibrahimov said that AzerGold always pays attention to the promotion of our national values, including the development of the local retail market of precious metals:  Since 2019, AzerGold CJSC has produced gold and silver products of various weights and designs from local raw materials and presented them to the local market. The main goal in the production of coins, which are engraved with fine patterns of our history, culture, art and modernity, is the promotion of our rich national values. Our first collections took advantage of the experience and guidance of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, which has made countless contributions to the promotion of our national and cultural heritage with unique projects for many years. During the 20 years of the Foundation, different cultural and artistic projects authored by Mehriban Aliyeva, First Vice-President of the Azerbaijan Republic, became famous beyond the borders of the country. The role of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and its President Mehriban Aliyeva in preserving Icherisheher, where the museum exposition is located, must specially be emphasized.   

Zakir Ibrahimov noted that during the past period, ten gold and three silver collections, depicting our material and spiritual values, were created by AzerGold CJSC: “These collections include coins dedicated to Heydar Aliyev Centre, Karabakh carpet – Chalabi, Gobustan, Pearls of Karabakh, as well as to our culture capital Shusha and prominent writer Khurshidbanu Natavan. Last year, a unique gold coin called “100 years and a Legacy Beyond That” was produced to commemorate the 100th birth anniversary of Heydar Aliyev, the National Leader of Azerbaijan.

This original coin sample is the reflection of the respect of our nation to the great leader, who dedicated his whole life to his nation. The limited edition of a 999.9-carat gold and one ounce of weight was minted based on innovative Smart Minting technology in Europe for the first time in Azerbaijan and in the region.  

Mr Chairman added that gold coins in three designs were minted during the last period of the year by innovative approach and modern technologies: “Two of these coins have already been presented to the public. I mean the gold coin collections dedicated to the significant events of 2024, i.e. the 20th anniversary of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the 100th anniversary of the Autonomous Republic of Nakhchivan. The next 11th gold coin collection of AzerGold is dedicated to Icherisheher. Historical and cultural monuments of Icherisheher architecture are portrayed on the coins. The engravings of the oldest parts of Baku on gold coins contribute to the promotion of the historical image of the capital in numismatics. The coins are made of a high-grade gold and weigh 5, 10 and 20 grammes.”

“Besides the afore-stated retail collections, we also produced special coins, dedicated to significant events of the country upon the orders of different organizations. A silver coin dedicated to the 15th European Youth Summer Olympic Festival Baku-2019, gold coin dedicated to the 600th birth anniversary of the Aggoyunlu leader Uzun Hasan, on the initiative of the Heydar Aliyev Centre, silver coin dedicated to the 25th anniversary of SPECA – the UN Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia can be mentioned among them. And such orders will always be welcomed by AzerGold.”   

Zakir Ibrahimov stated that although the main goal of the valuable products retail project is the promotion of our national and cultural heritage, it also attracts great interest as a profitable investment tool: “The retailed coins and ingots made of local gold and silver formed an additional source of income for AzerGold over time and it paved the way to open the first Sales and Exchange Centre in 2021. The Centre, aimed at supporting the reforms on the national jewelry market by the initiative of the Ministry of Economy, provides the sale of products, the purchase and exchange of gold according to the current market price, and thus makes an important contribution to AzerGold by meeting the needs of the local market.”