Georgia is gradually preparing to abandon Russian oil and switch to supplies from Central Asian countries. This step will not only diversify energy sources but also open the way for the export of petroleum products to the European Union, where restrictions on Russian raw materials are in force. Business Media writes about this, as reported by UNN.
This refers to the project of Black Sea Petroleum, which is building an oil refinery in Kulevi with a total investment of about $600 million.
Currently, the enterprise is already operating in the first stage and uses Russian raw materials. At the same time, the strategic goal is to completely replace it with oil from Turkmenistan, and later from Kazakhstan.
We have already reached agreements on the supply of Turkmen oil, but there are delays in its transportation through Azerbaijan. We hope that this issue will be resolved in the near future.
The transition to non-Russian raw materials will open up the possibility of exporting products to the European Union, as there are currently restrictions on the import of petroleum products made from Russian oil.
The project is being implemented in two stages. In the first stage, the plant produces semi-finished products – oil, fuel oil, and diesel. In the second stage, full-fledged production of gasoline, aviation fuel, and Euro-5 standard diesel is planned, with a total capacity of up to 4.5 million tons per year.
The company also expects not only to supply the domestic market but also to turn Georgia into an exporter of petroleum products.
Among the partners are already large international companies, including Saudi Aramco and Trafigura. An agreement has also been concluded with the American corporation Honeywell regarding the technological support of production.
At the same time, the key challenge remains the logistics of raw material supplies from Central Asia, particularly through the territory of Azerbaijan.
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