From January 20 the Enguri hydro power plant (HPP), the largest electricity producer of Georgia that supplies its Russia-occupied region of Abkhazia, will be closed for repairs for three months. Economy Minister Natia Turnava has announced that while the dam is closed, Abkhazia will receive electricity imported from Russia.
“Shutting down the Enguri HPP will not damage our energy system, as seasonal production is minimal at this time. As for how Abkhazia will be supplied with electricity during this period, it has already been announced that they will receive imported electricity from Russia and the payment is made by them, meaning that we do not participate in this process”, Turnava said.
Director of Enguri HPP Levan Mebonia said that renovation of the HPP had already begun, but now it was planned to completely repair the tunnel, which required the closure of the HPP until the end of April.
Mebonia said that during the shutdown of the HPP, Georgia would lose more than 400 million kWh of electricity.
Renovation of the Inguri HPP tunnel was postponed three times: first, the repair was planned for 2018, then for 2019. The next deadline was set for March 2020.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) allocated a loan of EUR 28 million for renovating the HPP in 2018. In addition, last year the EBRD allocated an additional EUR 10 million. (Agenda/Business World Magazine)
