Shevardnadze Welcomes GazProm Deal
(Tbilisi, July 28, 2003, Civil Georgia) – President Shevardnadze hails the possible entry of the Russian energy giant GazProm to Georgia, saying the government has reached only a preliminary agreement and the details of the contract have not been defined yet.
Russian energy giant GazProm and Georgian government signed an agreement on strategic cooperation for 25 years on July 1.
The agreement envisages supplying Georgia with gas; rehabilitation of Georgia’s gas distribution system, as well as two trunk-line gas pipelines, one of which will !
be used for transportation of gas to Armenia and the other – to Turkey, via Adjara Autonomous Republic.
Shevardnadze said in his Monday radio broadcast on July 28 that Georgia would have two largest gas providers – Itera and GazProm.
“The current gas provider Itera will stay in Georgia. This company has done much to supply the country with gas; however its resources are not enough for supplying the entire territory of Georgia. GazProm is one of the largest companies, which supplies European countries with gas,” Shevardnadze said, adding that the entry of GazProm would not hinder the implementation of the US-backed Shah-Deniz project.
