MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

First Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Levan Davitashvili participated in the 8th ministerial meeting within the framework of the Agreement on Strategic Partnership in the Field of Green Energy Development and Transmission between the Governments of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary. The meeting  is being held in Bucharest, the capital of Romania.

Minister of Energy of Romania Sebastian-Ioan Burduja, Minister of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan Parviz Shahbazov, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Péter Szijjártó, as well as Deputy Minister of Energy of Bulgaria Iva Petrova, Secretary General of the Government of Romania Mircea Abrudean and representative of the European Commission Cyril Loisel, also participated in the ministerial meeting. The Georgian delegation at the ministerial meeting included Jubo Turashvili, the Head of the Department of Energy Policy and Investment Projects of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Giorgi Gigineishvili, the General Director of the JSC Georgian State Electrosystem and Tamar Beruchashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to Romania.

In his welcoming speech, Levan Davitashvili emphasized the strategic partnership between Georgia, Azerbaijan, Romania and Hungary in the direction of green energy development and transmission and highlighted that the Black Sea submarine cable project is one of the most important aspects of this partnership.

"Georgia is proud to play the main role in this project. After the first ministerial meeting, significant work was done to implement this project. According to the full feasibility study, the project is promising and technically and economically feasible. This means that our efforts were productive and our next steps should be even more active and accelerated," – the First Vice Prime Minister stated.

Levan Davitashvili focused on the agreement between the energy companies participating in the project regarding the creation of a joint venture. According to Davitashvili, the agreement represents the commitment of the parties to make the green energy corridor project successful. "With our cooperation, we can create a more sustainable and successful future for our countries and beyond," – the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development said.

At the ministerial meeting, the Italian consulting company CESI held a presentation on the technical-economic feasibility study conducted within the framework of the Green Energy Corridor.

Within the framework of the ministerial meeting, the Ministers of Georgia, Romania, Azerbaijan and Hungary and the representative of the European Commission signed the amendment protocol to the Agreement on Strategic Partnership in the Field of Green Energy Development and Transmission between the Governments of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary.

Relevant agreement was also signed at the ministerial, which envisages the creation of a joint venture by transmission system operators of 4 countries (JSC Georgian State Electrosystem, AzərEnerji ASC, National Power Grid Company Transelectrica S.A. (Romania) and MVM Zrt (Hungary)). On Georgian side, the Agreement was signed by the General Director of JSC Georgian State Electrosystem, Giorgi Gigineishvili.

At the summarizing press conference after the meeting, the First Vice Prime Minister spoke about the event held in Bucharest and the importance of the project in general. According to the Georgian Economy Minister, the Black Sea Submarine Cable will contribute to the energy security not only of Europe, but also of the South Caucasus and the region in General. "Within the EU's goals, we should strive for the transition to renewable energy in the future, the transition to green energy is the most important issue in the agenda not only for the EU member states, but also for Georgia, since we are a candidate country and we attach great importance to participation in this project," – Levan Davitashvili commented.

In addition, as the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development noted, it is extremely important for free markets, including the European Union, to develop the infrastructure, including in the energy sector, to which the Black Sea Submarine Cable project shall make a great contribution.

"Special importance is given to this project because we do not have a direct land border with the European Union and only the Black Sea connects us. Access to affordable, reliable and secure energy from the South Caucasus is of utmost importance. It should be noted that in the South Caucasus, in particular in Georgia and Azerbaijan, impressive work is being done in the direction of the development of renewable energies. Together, we will be a reliable supplier of green energy to the European Union, and I am sure that the cooperation between Georgia and the European Union in this regard will be the long-term one," – Levan Davitashvili noted.