Experts will be studying the Namakhvani HPP project for two months. If they find any shortcomings, we will take their recommendations into account, the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, Natia Turnava, declared.

She said the dam would not be built until major studies are verified.

“We have started a process, which can be conditionally called ‘For a Better Namakhvani”. It is a part of an agreement reached with the investor company. The dam will not be built until basic studies are verified. We think the studies are quite substantial. Their preparation took the qualified experts many years, but the studies could always be perfected. We have involved experts, scientific circles in the research verification process and construction supervision process to remove many safety questions and gain more confidence in the project. Today we agreed that interested experts would be discussing the completed analysis for two months. If they discover any risk, any defect, we will gather in the same format, listen to their recommendations and take them into account. We would develop solutions together with these experts and present them to the company. It is a guarantee that the project will be safe,” Turnava said.

The Ministers of Economy and Environment held a working meeting on the Namakhvani HPP project attended by energy experts, ecologists, hydrologists and geologists.

The non-governmental sector sees the agreement between the Georgian government and the Turkish company ENKA Renewables Ltd as favourable for the investor and believes construction poses several risks.

The Georgian government and ENKA Renewables Ltd signed a perpetual build-own-operate agreement back in 2019. ENKA has been awarded the rights to develop, construct, own and operate the Namakhvani HPP Cascade Project in Georgia.