The company APM Terminals operating the port of Poti, Georgia, has renewed procedures aimed at obtaining the permit for expansion and deepening of the port, as declared by Managing Director Keld Mosgaard Christensen.
According to him, in case of the project implementation, Georgia would win a new sea gate, and the port would admit Panamax vessels, which in its turn would greatly contribute in the country’s economy development.
“The process of permit obtaining consists of three phases, and Minister of Economy promised us that by late March the initial permit will be issued. The project cost amounts to 1Bn GEL, and all the investments are just of our own, we already have such possibilities. The only thing we require from the state is access to motor and rail roads,” he stated.
APM’s first try to obtain permit for dredging in Poti Port was in 2019 and came unlucky: the permit was first issued but then withdrawn due to a protest by Anaklia Development Consortium (ADC) that was dealing with another project of a much larger and mightier port in Georgia.
At the time the permit issued was regarded as a threat to Anaklia construction and investors attraction, as two deep-sea ports are seen as too much for the country, and making Poti a deep-sea port would have meant termination of Anaklia project.
In the beginning of 2020 ADC was removed from the project due to its failure to find investors, and as for today there are no activities in this direction while Government works on a new tender.
In this situation the APM Poti management has decided to take one more try and obtain the permit since Anaklia port does not exist even on paper.
And finally, by the end of the month APM has succeeded, a First-Stage Land Usage Permit issued to APM Terminals Poti.
However, this is just the beginning of the process. The next (second) stage of the process will include an Environmental Impact Study and detailed project documentation which will also require the close cooperation of the Government to assure that the timeline for this project stays on schedule. Today we can see that the world-wide pandemic can cause delays in mobilizing personnel and equipment and therefore, everybody must work together as expeditiously as possible.
Finally, upon completion of the second stage, APM will move to the third (final) stage of the permit process, where it will be even more critical for the Government to remain proactive and constructively engaged in finding an optimal solution for access to the port during the construction and eventual operational stage for the benefit of the logistics providers and the overall supply chain. This will guarantee the success of this major infrastructure investment.
“APM Terminals Poti – Poti Sea Port Corporation is confident that, with the continued support and cooperation of the Georgian Government, this project will be a success and an example of the kind of partnership that will attract additional international investments to Georgia in the near future,” remarked Keld Mosgaard Christensen, Managing Director of APM Terminals – Poti Sea Port Corporation.
https://commersant.ge/ru/post/ey-pi-em-terminal-ob-uglublenii-potiyskogo-porta
https://www.apmterminals.com/en/news/news-releases/2020/200327-first-stage-land-usage-permit-issued-to-apm-terminals-poti