Newly Launched Seaport in Poti to Employ 200 More People
By Natalia Kochiashvili
Tuesday, February 1, 2022
The official opening ceremony of the Poti New Seaport was held in Poti on the 29th of January. Georgia’s Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili has named transforming the country into a regional hub as one of the ‘main priorities’ of his government while launching the Poti Seaport.
Garibashvili said his team was focusing on "the full realization of our potential, so from the very first day of this project we fully supported the PACE group and each employee.” He noted that the company PACE has been operating successfully for 30 years and the average annual turnover of the existing berths is 3 million tons. The PM thanked the head of the company Soso Dolidze for the implementation of a large-scale project, congratulated him and his staff on the anniversary of the company, and wished them success.
The PM cited the country’s ‘largest transit and transport’ potential in the region, calling the seaport project ‘extremely important' for the region.
Tamar Ioseliani, the Head of the Georgian Maritime Transport Agency informed that New Poti Seaport will additionally employ approximately 200 people, adding that it is important for our corridor as it will redirect cargo to our corridor and increase port infrastructure.
A total of $93 million was invested in the construction of the port, large-scale hydraulic structures were built and modern port infrastructure was arranged. Further expansion of the project, costing $30 million, will include the construction of an additional 230-meter-long deep-water (13 m) berth.
According to the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, the construction of the new port was carried out by the joint efforts of the PACE Group and the United States Agency for International Development Finance (DFC). The agency says that the new port is one of the largest projects ever implemented in the Georgian maritime sector and by the completion of two phases its cost will reach $120 million. It should be noted that the DFC has financed the port construction project with $50 million, which is the largest investment allocated by this organization to a single project in the region.
United States ambassador Kelly Degnan said the port was part of the physical infrastructure connecting Georgia with Europe, making it a symbol of the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of the country.
“The $50 million investment from the DFC is a demonstration of America’s commitment to Georgia’s prosperity and to the Georgian people. Infrastructure projects contribute to further economic development and growth in Georgia,” Degnan said.
Note that the Poti Seaport is the largest port in Georgia, it handles liquid, dry bulk, passenger ferries and hosts 80% of Georgia’s container traffic. The port serves as a European gateway for international trade in Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.
The berth and new port infrastructure allow it to service large tonnage vessels with a payload of up to 50,000 tonnes. After the completion of the project, the capacity of the unified port infrastructure of Georgia will increase by 3.5 million tons.
