Economy Minister: Gov’t to continue support for raising industrial business competitiveness

The Georgian Government will continue to assist industrial producers and businesses through its Enterprise Georgia programmes in a bid to increase the competitiveness of the domestic sector, Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili said on Friday.

Davitashvili made the comment at the launch of a new Georgian facility for Nova, a manufacturer of building and repair supplies, noting the company had begun producing goods that had never been made in Georgia before.

He added the launch would make a "major contribution" to “active development” of the construction industry in the country.

The Minister also said the state programme had given the company the opportunity to start local manufacturing, which in turn served the domestic market, replaced imports worth ₾120 million ($47,913 mln) and created exports, especially to the European Union market.

He also cited a free trade agreement with the EU that allowed use of raw materials produced in Turkey and Georgia in products made in the two countries and permitted free trade of these products on the European market without quotas, barriers or tariffs.

Nova has increased production and made investments totalling more than ₾20 million ($7,985 million) in the western city of Batumi and capital Tbilisi. The company became the first in the South Caucasus to start manufacturing XPS, a material used for thermal insulation of building foundations, ceilings, and façades.