Deputy Minister of Economy Davit Tvalabeishvili declares that the government plans to intensify gas storage project next year. The project is implemented by the government-owned Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation (GOGC).
The point is that the main source of funding for the project no longer exists, as € 120 million out of the € 150 million loan allocated by the German Development Agency (KFW) in 2018, was spent on the management of COVId-19 pandemic in 2020.
According to Davit Tvalabeishvili, from next year the government will start looking for new ways to finance the project, before which GOGC will start the first phase of the project with the available funds.
“We are going to get the project active from the next year and we hope that we can implement the first phase of the construction of the gas storage, including drilling several wells.
All funds were not spent on the pandemic management. We still have up to EUR 30 million.
There will be discussions in the government and decisions will be made. The main thing is to start the first phase next year. As for the full funding, it will probably be clear by the end of the year, but it will take about a year and a half before the first phase is completed. Therefore, we have time to raise funds for this project,” said Davit Tvalabeishvili.
