Tbilisi (GBC) – Due to the new model of the development of the Anaklia deep-sea port, the state will have to mobilize approximately $200 million in addition to the planned amount. Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Mariam Kvrivishvili announced this at a briefing on Monday.

According to the minister, the mentioned amount was necessary to implement a new component, which involves the arrangement of fundamental port infrastructure, including berths, communications and other related infrastructure. The total investment volume of the project remains unchanged and amounts to $1.1 billion, although the proportion of financing is changing. Under the previous concept, the state's obligation was limited to the current infrastructure (breakwater and dredging), as well as the railway and access road, while the new model also includes the construction of berths.

According to Mariam Kvrivishvili, $50-52 million has been optimized within the framework of the current construction works. Accordingly, instead of $250 million, the state will need to find an additional $200 million, which will be financed from budget funds and in cooperation with international financial institutions (IFIs). According to the minister, negotiations with international donors have already begun and there is great interest in the project. Private international operators will have to invest in fully equipping the berths.

As for cooperation with the Chinese-Singaporean consortium, the minister noted that the parties will continue to work actively. “We remain in a very friendly and partnership mode with the Chinese side. We are confident that, given the importance of this project, we will see the involvement of the Chinese side in the updated model of the Anaklia port,” said Kvrivishvili. He also added that who specifically will be the representative of the Chinese side in the new model will become more clear in the ongoing work process.

Ultimately, the state will invest in the Anaklia port in three directions: dredging and breakwater works, construction of a railway and a connecting road, and a new component - the construction of the main port infrastructure and berths.

According to the original project of the Anaklia deep-water port, the port was supposed to receive its first ship in 2020. However, that same year, the Georgian government canceled the investment agreement signed in 2016 with the Anaklia Development Consortium, which delayed the implementation of the project for years.

Later, on May 29, 2024, the government announced that a 49 percent stake in the port would be acquired by the Chinese-Singaporean consortium China Communications Construction Company. The company is a key player in China’s ambitious global project, the Belt and Road Initiative, but has been blacklisted by the United States for its destructive actions in the South China Sea.

Despite the Chinese presence, Western partners are also interested in the project. In March 2026, the Anaklia Port plan was presented to Peter Andreoli, a representative of the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs of the US State Department, who was visiting Tbilisi. At this time, an official investment agreement has not yet been signed between the parties and work on detailed agreements is ongoing.

According to Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, at this stage, the first phase of the port is expected to be completed by 2029. In parallel with the construction of the port, work is also underway to arrange an access road and railway.