Page 56 - GEORptApr21

The number was 94% down year on year.
A very small number of this year's international visitors in September were classified as tourists.
In September, the largest number of visitors, namely 18,540, came to Georgia from Turkey. On an annual comparison, the number of Turkish visitors dropped by 80%.
9.1.6 Infrastructure and construction sector news
Georgia to seek new investor for Anaklia deepwater port project
Georgian developer Blox to build shopping mall in Zugdidi
Georgia will resume the process of selecting a new investor for the Anaklia deepwater port project, estimated at around $2.5bn, in the near future, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili confirmed.
Georgia’s government scrapped the contract with the former investor, Anaklia Development Consortium (ADC) in early 2020 after ADC failed to raise enough capital.
ADC and Bob Meijer, a Dutch investor member of ADC’s supervisory board, have filed independent arbitration claims against Georgia over what they claim are their infringed rights in the Anaklia Port project.
The Ministry of Economy will start the legal procedures for announcing the new tender and will hire an international consultant to assist in the process of selecting an investor, Garibashvili explained.
"The government has always had unprecedented support for this project. Our government has fully supported the Anaklia project at both the executive and legislative levels,” PM Garibashvili stated on March 4.
He said that “major and various obligations have been repeatedly postponed [by ADC]. Among them, the main commitments were postponed three times, the government also redeemed and transferred the investment area worth GEL58mn ($20mn).”
The government has also undertaken the construction of a road and a railway connecting the port. The Roads Department already has this project ready. Furthermore, Garibashvili argued, the state’s Partnership Fund was ready to provide a subordinated loan of $100mn to the investor on the condition that the investor would be able to meet its obligations, but “they were not able to find the necessary capital and loan financing in the amount of $400mn.”
Georgian developer Blox is to invest $6mn in developing the first shopping mall in Zugdidi, Georgia.
Real estate consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield was recently assigned to manage the leasing campaign for what will be the first such retail complex built according to international standards in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region. According to the firm, the construction process would start this month with a finish envisaged by the end of 2021. The total area of the multifunctional shopping center is to be 15,000 square metres. Blox said the shopping centre would employ locals in an effort that would contribute to the region's economic development.
"Cushman & Wakefield was recently assigned to manage the leasing campaign for the first modern shopping centre in Zugdidi. The project is set to introduce the first contemporary, full-service shopping centre in Zugdidi, combining fashion retail, a hypermarket, F&B units, and other stores under one roof. Negotiations are currently under way with major brand operators with an established presence on the Georgian market,” Cushman & Wakefield said.
56 GEORGIA Country Report April 2021 www.intellinews.com