Page 53 - GEORptOct19

Accordingly, in line with the estimated annual production, the State Electricity Company will pay Kartli Power Plant $ 5.795mn per year by the end of 2026.
Over 89,000 people have signed a petition urging international development banks not to finance the Nenskra hydropower plant project in Svaneti, Georgia, said a statement from NGO Bankwatch.
Plans to build a 280 MW hydropower plant with a 125m high dam in a river valley in Svaneti have met with strong resistance from environmental groups both in Georgia and outside. Similar campaigns have been mounted elsewhere in the South Caucasus and Southeast Europe as efforts to develop hydropower resources in the two regions are stepped up.
Georgia is developing the Nenskra plant under a build-operate-transfer (BOT) arrangement with private investor Korea Water Resources Corporation, with financing from international development banks.
Representatives from the Stop Nenskra campaign delivered the petition to banks at the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) annual meeting on July 12. They appealed specifically to the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), which have approved approved loans for the Nenskra project worth $150mn and $214mn, though the final loan contracts have not been signed yet.
Opponents say the project threatens the environment and livelihood of local villagers, and claim it will considerable economic risks for the country.
Tbilisi Green Alternative, part of the Bankwatch association,​ ​claimed last month​ ​that Georgia’s government has committed to buy electricity generated by the Nenskra hydropower plant during its first 36 years of operation at a price that is on average double the current tariff for domestic electricity, and three times the price of electricity that Georgia exports. If this is borne out, it would generate losses of approximately $60mn per year for the state budget. Green Alternative said it based its calculations on a leaked document.
Its assessment contradicts claims of the government and the project’s private developer JSC Nenskra. They have long maintained that the 280 MW hydropower plant is essential to Georgia’s energy security, arguing it would provide the country with considerably cheaper electricity.
9.1.9 ​Defence sector news
Georgia will from July 27 host the Agile Spirit 2019 multinational exercise involving over 3,000 soldiers from the 14 Nato member states and allies, Georgia Today​ ​reported​.​ T​ he drill will begin at the base of the 2nd Infantry Brigade of Senaki, Western Georgia and will also take place at the Orpolo and Vaziani fire ranges.
The Ministry of Defence of Georgia reported that the major aim of the exercise was to enhance interoperability between the participating countries, bring more sophisticatation to operational capabilities and strengthen planning and executing operations within the multinational environment, while also contributing to the maintenance of stability and security across the Black Sea Region.
“Strength through Partnership” has been set as the main message of the initiative.
The countries, participating in Agile Spirit 2019 are: Georgia, UK, US, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Bulgaria, Belgium, Norway, Montenegro, Greece, Turkey, Ukraine, as well as Romania.
It is the ninth time that Georgia has hosted the exercise. It is to be led by the country’s defence ministry and the United States European Command.
53​ GEORGIA Country Report​ October 2019 ​ ​www.intellinews.com