GEORGIA’S ENERGY INDEPENDENCE

Abstract

  Every country wants to be energy independent. It’s quite difficult to achieve, or sometimes practically impossible. Georgia has declared its desire to have energy independence, so that external political or economic factors will have less influence on the domestic markets of the country. Georgia was able to open up energy trains of Russia as much as possible. Therefore, ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine had less impact on Georgia, compared to other European states. Achieving energy independence requires development of a well-thought-out plan and successful achievement of the milestones outlined in that plan. Georgia does not import electricity more than 8-10% each year, but thermal power plants that use natural gas as the main resource generate about 20-25% of electricity. Therefore, there is a necessity to import natural gas from neighboring countries for electricity generation. Today, there is a need to use renewable resources and utilize abundant hydro resources, for which state support and appropriate measures are required.