MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

The presentation of annual report and future plans of the Oil and Gas Corporation was held today at the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia. The meeting was attended by Minister Natia Turnava, Deputy Minister Davit Tvalabeishvili and responsible persons of the Corporation.

According to the CEO of the Corporation, Giorgi Bakhtadze, over the last few years, the Corporation has been generating a significant profit in the financial year. He also emphasized the circumstance that following the visit to the key issuers in Georgia, J.P. Morgan issued a press release on June 11, 2019, as per which, the Corporation is rated as the most trusted one, while the international rating company upgraded the Corporation's long-term rating to “BB -” on October 15 of the same year, estimating its prospects as stable. 

It was noted at the presentation that the Oil and Gas Corporation is a key instrument in ensuring the reliability of natural gas supply. In addition, the Corporation is a representative of the Government of Georgia in major oil and gas transit projects and also has the status of a national oil company. The Corporation constitutes the state interest in the agreements on distribution of the products.

According to Giorgi Bakhtadze, the Corporation has fully financed the construction of Gardabani Thermal Power Plant 2 in the east of Tbilisi. This is the 230 MW combined-cycle thermal power plant equipped with the latest technologies, which will be fully operational by the beginning of 2020 and will steadily supply the electricity to the Unified Electricity System of Georgia.

Another priority direction of the Corporation is the construction/rehabilitation of gas pipelines on the territory of Georgia and gasification of the regions of the country, which have never been supplied with natural gas; for example, one of these regions is Adjara Highland. According to Giorgi Bakhtadze, in 2019 the Corporation has completed the construction of the 97 km gas pipeline.

As for the future projects, it is planned to start working on the project of construction of Gardabani 3 combined-cycle thermal power plant in 2020. For the construction of the mentioned plant newly modified turbines will be used, which will have higher efficiency than previously produced turbines, hence lower natural gas consumption per kWh of electricity generated. 

Also, in 2020, selection of EPC (design, procurement, construction) contractor is scheduled for a large scale underground gas storage project. This project is also planned to be implemented by the Oil and Gas Corporation. The underground gas storage construction will complete by 2024. 

Refinancing of the current Eurobonds is planned in April 2020 and as a result, 300 million of Eurobonds will be issued. Full redemption of 250 million USD bonds will be made.

At the end of the presentation, the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Natia Turnava, positively assessed the activities carried out by the Corporation in 2019. She stated that “the energy security of the country also greatly depends on the successful operation of the Corporation. The Oil and Gas Corporation is a good example of a successful and profitable state-owned enterprise. With the direct involvement and participation of the Corporation, the most important energy facilities are being built and reconstruction of the existing facilities is also underway, which is ultimately vital for the country’s energy independence and secure and uninterrupted power supply,” – Natia Turnava said.