16:15

A criminal case has been initiated at SSS regarding the fire incident at the Oil Refinery.

On March 5, 2025, comprehensive measures were taken in conjunction with relevant state bodies regarding the fire incident at the SOCAR Oil Refinery located in the Nizami district of Baku city.

During the preliminary investigation, it was established that in the process of preparing for the repair of the pump system No. N-21/1 of the primary treatment plant No. 21 of the production site No. 2 of the SOCAR oil refinery plant, the relevant safety regulations were not observed. So, despite the presence of a written warning notice about the continued flow of fuel oil in the pump during the shift, the on-duty personnel, who worked from March 4th to 5th, 2025, handed over the installation to the repair and restoration group without bringing it to a fully ready state and without cleaning the pipeline with heavy diesel fraction.

As a result, when the pumping equipment was disconnected from the general installation for the repair purposes, a highly flammable fuel oil mass leaked out under pressure, then ignited and released a large fire that covered a significant territory, and this created a serious threat to the life and health of people, led to the decommissioning of the primary processing installation, the fire in surrounding structures, the failure of other accompanying technical devices, as well as interruptions in the process of production of fuel materials and material damage.

In addition, on March 8, 2025, as part of the process of eliminating the consequences of the fire and preparing the installation for repair, the same personnel on duty violated the safety rules when draining the diesel product from the pipelines and the primary processing plant, and despite the welding work being carried out on the territory, the diesel product was poured onto the land where the installation was located, which created a fire hazard again, disrupted the work process at the enterprise and caused material damage.

According to the criminal case conducted by the State Security Service in connection with the fact, the head of the duty staff, the chief operator Garaev Sadig Gumbat oglu was detained and brought to criminal responsibility under article 223.2 (violation of safety rules at explosive objects) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

A preliminary investigation is currently underway in the criminal case.