Business summit sparks further US support

On October 28, Tbilisi Marriot Hotel hosted a summit which attracted 19 businesses from the USA, mostly in the energy sphere. As their host, US Deputy Secretary of Commerce John Sullivan, said, the summit served to express the trust still placed in the Georgian business environment by US entrepreneurs, especially after the August events.

John Sullivan thanked the delegates for coming to Georgia. “The trade mission is part of US support for the territorial integrity of Georgia,” Sullivan added. He said that the country is still very attractive for investors, especially since the publication of last year’s data which showed that investments in the country rose by 12%.

An agreement between the Georgian Government and Doheny Global Group to build six hydro electro stations in the country was officially announced at the summit. Doheny representative Irwin G. Katsof told the summit that the company would invest USD 170-175 million in this project.

Georgian Minister of Energy Aleksandre Khetaguri expressed his satisfaction with the productiveness of the summit. “The interest in Georgian energy potential was big. Our hydro energy capacity is very big and only 14% of it is yet utilized,” he added. According to Khetaguri, the construction envisaged by the new agreement with Doheny will start after the second phase of negotiations. He thanked the Doheny Global Group for its investment.