India Keen to Finance Georgian Hydropower Projects

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Georgia Kakha Kaladze met with representatives of the State Bank of India and Trans Electric, an investing company of Khudoni HPP, on Wednesday.

According to Kaladze, State Bank of India is interested in joining the Khudoni HPP funding. After the examination of the financial risks of the project, the State Bank of India will take a decision on allocating a loan for construction of the hydropower plant.
The State Bank of Georgia will finance 70 percent of the construction costs of Khudoni HPP.

Khudoni HPP creates a unique investment opportunity in hydro-power sector and is implemented in Samegrelo – Zemo Svaneti region on Inguri River. The Khudoni Hydro project is about 34 km upstream of operational Inguri Arch Dam (1,320 MW) and comprises diversion tunnel, coffer dams, water intake and penstocks, underground powerhouse, tailrace tunnels, and other associated works. Khudoni HPP`s installed capacity is 702 MW with annual power generation reaching 1,539 billion KWh. The project envisages construction of an arch dam at crest with columns, with a height of 200.5 meters and costs $1.125 billion.

The construction of hydropower Khudoni suspended for determination of full effects on the Georgian ecosystem. The construction of the plant began in the 1990s, but was stopped under pressure of the national liberation movements and the “green” parties. Later, Mikheil Saakashvili’s government made a decision to continue the construction, whilst the project was anew suspended after the Georgian Dream’s coming to power.