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Nizami Piriyev, left, an Azerbaijan-based millionaire, paid Mr Blair, centre, to fly to Baku. Photo: TREND

Nizami Piriyev, an Azerbaijan-based millionaire, paid Mr Blair to fly to Baku, the capital, earlier this week to open his new “methanol plant” funded by a British government-backed bank.

The disclosure comes amid growing scrutiny of Mr Blair’s network of private backers, with the Kuwaiti government understood to be one of his biggest financial supporters.

The former prime minister has earned an estimated £14 million since leaving Downing Street in June 2007. He no longer has to disclose the sources of his income.

Westminster watchdogs have raised concerns over the employment of former ministers, including prime ministers, by the private sector after they leave office.

Mr Blair typically charges tens of thousands of pounds simply to give a speech and is therefore thought to have received more than £100,000 for his trip to Azerbaijan.

He made the trip to Baku, his first to the former Soviet bloc country, to open the methanol plant of Azmeco, the Azerbaijan Methanol Company. Mr Blair’s presence as the “special guest” of Mr Piriyev, the company’s chairman, surprised many onlookers.

The plant has received financial backing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The bank, which is owned and funded by various governments, is based in London and the Treasury is the second biggest shareholder.

The Iranian regime has reportedly also provided funding for the plant. The EBRD said that Mr Blair was not involved in securing its backing.

Nasib Piriyev, Nizami’s son and the chief executive of Azmeco, told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Blair had been compensated for his visit. “We were in correspondence with his office. He was interested in the project and eventually we met him in Baku,” he said. “We covered his expenses.”

He hoped Mr Blair would continue to promote the firm. “We hope that he will mention Azerbaijan and our methanol company when he makes speeches around the world,” he said

On his visit, the former prime minister urged the country to be “transparent”. Mr Blair made a statement to Azerbaijan media at the opening of the plant, during which he said: “It is a great pleasure to be associated with it and give my support to it.” He added that he was looking forward to his next visit to the country.

The Piriyev family are one of the richest in Azerbaijan. Mr Piriyev Snr, 51, ran a section of Russia’s Gazprom, the state oil firm, before setting up a company called Creditline that won a contract worth about £2 billion to develop a petrochemical complex in Syria.

In 2006, he returned to Azerbaijan, where he was born, to set up Azmeco. His family’s interests include oil and gas refineries in Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan.

The family’s assets are estimated to be worth £150 million.

The visit is understood to have been arranged for Mr Blair by his US-based agent.

A spokesman said he was not planning an ongoing relationship with Mr Piriyev and did not have any dealings with the family while in office. He stressed that Mr Blair welcomed the environmental benefits of the methanol plant.