MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Mariam Kvrivishvili signed several strategic agreements between Georgia and Azerbaijan in the energy and transport sectors in Baku, among which the intergovernmental agreements on the supply of natural gas to Georgia for a 20-year term, as well as on electricity supply and transit, are particularly noteworthy. Mariam Kvrivishvili, together with the delegation, visited Azerbaijan within the framework of the visit of the Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Kobakhidze.

The comprehensive package of agreements in the energy sector is the result of several months of successfully concluded negotiations between the governments of the two countries, which is very important for strengthening the energy security of Georgia and developing the regional energy corridor.

It is worth noting that the agreement on the purchase and sale of additional gas from Azerbaijan, which was signed in 2003, had expired, therefore, the conclusion of the new agreement and its extension for a 20-year term is of particular importance for strategic cooperation within the framework of the South Caucasus Pipeline project.

Within the framework of the visit to Baku, a new agreement was also signed on concluding an operational contract regarding the Georgian section of the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline, which ensures the resumption of oil transit from Central Asia to Europe through Georgia and will significantly increase the revenues of our country’s budget.

It is particularly important that the protocol of the bilateral coordinating council was signed, by which the new railway section of Baku-Tbilisi-Kars will enter full operation. It is also very important that by the decision reached between the parties, daily passenger railway communication between Tbilisi and Baku will be restored on May 26 of this year, after a 6-year pause.

The comprehensive package signed between Georgia and Azerbaijan in the energy sector is an agreement of historical importance, which will further deepen economic ties between the countries and strengthen the energy security of Georgia.

Along with Mariam Kvrivishvili, the strategic agreements with Azerbaijan in the energy and transport sectors were signed by the Minister of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mikayil Jabbarov, the Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov and the Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rashad Nabiyev.

Mariam Kvrivishvili was accompanied in Baku by the Deputy Minister Tamar Ioseliani, as well as the heads of the Georgian Oil and Gas Corporation, the Georgian State Electrosystem and ESCO.