Tbilisi (GBC) - Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on Monday that the government's goal is to complete the first phase of the Anaklia deep-sea port construction by 2029 and have the port receive its first ships.

According to the head of government, there is great interest in the project both among Georgia's partners and neighboring countries, as well as in Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

Kobakhidze noted that the pace of work has been accelerated to the maximum after the contract was revised, reducing its cost by about $50 million. He thanked the Ministry of Economy and the minister personally for this result. According to the Prime Minister, the smooth progress of the work gives grounds for optimism that the port will receive its first ships by 2029.

The Prime Minister’s statement was preceded by information from the Ministry of Economy, according to which the first dredging vessel (Tristao Da Cunha) entered the Anaklia sea area on August 1 to carry out dredging works. According to the ministry, the vessel will begin work on the construction of the breakwater channel after completing the procedures established by law.

According to the project, the seabed in the Anaklia sea area will be deepened to 17.5 meters, and a 1,380-meter-long breakwater will be built at a later stage. The construction works in the sea area of ​​the future port are being carried out by the Belgian company, a member of the so-called “Big Four”, Jan De Nul N.V., together with Georgian partners. The Ministry of Economy announced the Belgian company’s victory in the tender on August 1, 2024.

As announced in early July, the Georgian government is building the Anaklia deep-water port using the world-proven “landlord” model. This model will allow the state to develop the port not in partnership with one, but with several states and companies at once, which will create the best conditions for attracting cargo and its efficient operation. Along with the creation of port infrastructure, the government will also ensure the arrangement of road and rail access to the port.

In addition, according to the state decision, the investor will have only a 49% share of the port, while the state will retain the controlling 51%. On May 29, 2024, the Georgian government announced that a Chinese-Singaporean consortium would acquire a 49% share of the Anaklia port.

According to the original project, the first ship was to be received by the Anaklia port in 2020. That same year, the Georgian Dream government terminated the 2016 contract with the Anaklia Development Consortium (ADC). The consortium included TBC Holding Anaklia (Georgia), Van Oord PPP International (Netherlands), Wondernet Express (UK), G-Star LLC (Bulgaria), Conti International (USA), and Dutch investor Bob Meyer.

At the time, the government cited non-fulfillment of obligations as the official reason, while the consortium itself pointed to state interference. The state won two international arbitration disputes in this case, after which it promised to continue the construction of the port with its own funds.