Former Georgian Economy Minister Giorgi Kobulia says the government's proposed landlord model for the Anaklia Deep Sea Port is a realistic approach, as it reduces the financial risks for private terminal operators by placing the main investment burden on the state.
Speaking on BMGTV, Kobulia argued that building a port of Anaklia’s scale on purely commercial terms is unrealistic. He said the previous Anaklia consortium failed to attract investors not because of government interference, but because large-scale port infrastructure projects are difficult to make commercially viable without significant state participation.
Kobulia stressed that the government should secure agreements with companies willing to invest in the port’s terminal infrastructure before construction moves forward. He identified global shipping giants Maersk of Denmark and MSC of Switzerland as the most likely strategic partners, noting that MSC already handles more than half of cargo traffic through Georgian ports.
According to Kobulia, launching the project without preliminary commitments from major operators would be highly risky and could repeat the setbacks of the past decade. He also said he does not expect the Anaklia port to be completed and receive its first vessel by 2029, calling that timeline unrealistic.
