MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Mariam Kvrivishvili, met with the representatives of the energy sector. The Minister introduced them to ongoing processes, the government’s vision and new initiatives aimed at developing the field. Mariam Kvrivishvili placed special emphasis on the decision to waive fines for investors since the total volume of accumulated fines owed to the state amounts to 1 billion GEL. According to the Minister, the fines resulted from several factors and mainly delays in deadlines, as well as the failure of companies to fulfill responsibilities undertaken by memorandum.

“The waiving of fines is a historic and very important decision for the sector. Communication and feedback with the private sector help us in the working process to be as effective as possible in making decisions to facilitate investments” – Mariam Kvrivishvili stated.

The Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development highlighted that the Georgian government has taken a very important step toward the rapid development of the energy sector by forgiving the fines, and this serves as a foundation for starting and continuing mutual cooperation between the state and the energy sector from a new, clean tab.

According to the Minister’s assessment, the main challenge identified during the process of working with the sector was specifically the fines component, which had caused the majority of energy projects to be delayed. Mariam Kvrivishvili noted that since the removal of the biggest barrier in relations with the energy sector through the forgiveness of fines, the Ministry has been actively processing a large number of applications for signing relevant categories of memorandums over the past few weeks, which concern research, construction of energy projects, etc.

“Energy is objectively a particularly important sector for Georgia’s economy today, moving toward the country’s energy security and independence, which has many positive effects on the country’s development in a proper direction. The process of waiving fines will be transparent and fair” – Mariam Kvrivishvili stressed.

The Minister emphasized that the pardon of fines will occur with preconditions and stipulations; the first and foremost is the determination of new deadlines according to the nature of the projects depending whether it is a solar, wind, or hydro project, as well as based on the project status taking into account whether it is in the research or construction stage. According to Mariam Kvrivishvili, for the state and the private sector to have more clarity in this process, it is necessary to be clear for everyone regarding which projects will be implemented within what timeframes – both from the side of the state and the investors.

At the meeting with energy sector representatives, the Minister also discussed new approaches to supporting investment projects. Special attention was focused on the needs of projects important for the development of the energy sector and the role of the state in their implementation process.

“We have started active work so that at the beginning of next year, we can present the state’s position to the sector, especially regarding large-scale projects that are and will be important for the development of the energy sector. The focus will be on how the state support such large, important projects with a different approach, which may be reflected in various instruments” – the Minister of Economy said.

Furthermore, Mariam Kvrivishvili spoke about future plans for the energy sector and noted that the state plans to integrate the sector into existing programs, including the ones provided by the Enterprise Georgia Agency.

“The main goal of our Ministry is for energy projects to enter into operation as quickly as possible, so that the country can reduce its dependence on energy imports and become fully self-sufficient in terms of electricity supply” – Mariam Kvrivishvili explained.

Along with Mariam Kvrivishvili, the meeting with energy sector representatives was attended by Deputy Minister Inga Pkhaladze, Director General of the JSC Georgian State Electrosystem, Vano Zardiashvili, and Director General of the ESCO, Tornike Kazarashvili.