Georgian Gov’t discusses construction of $30mln hydro powerplants in west of country

The Government of Georgia on Monday discussed a project initiated by the Ministry of Economy for construction of two new hydro powerplants in the western regions of Racha and Samegrelo, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.

The Government Administration said one of the two HPPs, with a capacity of 11.8 MW, would be built in Oni municipality in Racha, while the other - with a capacity up to six MW - in Chkhorotsku municipality in Samegrelo.

Over $30 million will be invested in the projects, the Administration said.

The Georgian Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili said development of hydropower was “very important” for the Government.

In general, energy remains important for all countries of the world, and implementation of energy projects from renewable sources is also very important for us [...] We are now working on holding the second auction [on HPPs], which will allow us to get the projects that investors have to be supported by the state”, he said.

The Minister also said more than 100 MW of capacity was planned to be put into operation by the end of the year, calling the increases over the recent years an “unprecedented result” and adding “we must maintain this dynamic in the coming years”.