The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)is stepping up its support for the development of renewable energy in Georgia by financing the construction of a new Hydro-electric Power Plant (HPP) in Dariali in north-eastern Georgia.
The EBRD announced it will arrange an $80 million USD (140 million GEL) syndicated loan to JSC Dariali Energy for the development, construction and operation of the HPP, which when complete, will be one of the few privately owned greenfield HPPs in Georgia.
The HPP will be constructed on the Tergi River, in north-eastern Georgia. EBRD director for Power and Energy Nandita Parshad believed the plant – with an installed capacity of 108 MW and an expected annual electricity output of 510 GWh – will play a key role in the development of Georgia’s hydropower resources.
"This investment demonstrates our commitment to invest in renewable sources of energy to improve Georgia’s energy security and mitigate the impact of climate change.”
"The project will be supplying electricity to both the Georgian and Turkish electricity networks utilising the Black Sea Transmission Line financed by the Bank in 2010 and commissioned in 2014,” Parshad said.
It is believed the plant will help reduce carbon-based power generation and cut dependence on imported fuels in the winter months.
EBRD director for the Caucasus, Moldova and Belarus Bruno Balvanera was confident that Georgia had some of the highest untapped hydropower resources in the world, with less than 20 percent of this potential capacity presently developed.
"The investment supports efforts to develop this potential and [will] lead the country towards a greener policy as well as taking advantage of its strategic location of linking the South Caucasus with Europe and Turkey. This will help to strengthen not only national but also regional energy security,” said Balvanera.
This investment project will be the first energy project in Georgia to deliver carbon-neutral construction by including reforestation after the completion of construction works.
In Georgia, the EBRD is the largest institutional investor. Since it established, the EBRD has invested approximately €2.2 billion (4.7 billion GEL) in over 170 projects worldwide. In the Georgian power sector alone, the EBRD has committed more than €350 million (760 million GEL).