The Namakhvani Hydropower Cascade is a system of two plants with a total capacity of 433 MW and a potential yearly generation of 1496 mln. kWh (around 13% of the total generation in 2020). The HPP has been designed for the river Rioni, to be built just 20 kilometers or so from Kutaisi, one of the largest cities in Georgia. The project is operated by the Norwegian Clean Energy Group, with 10% shares, and the Turkish industrial conglomerate, ENKA Insaat ve Sanayi AS, holding 90%.

Modest increase in confidence – Consumer confidence improved by a slight 0.8 percentage points in April (from -39.0 in March to -38.2 in April). Unlike in several of the previous consecutive months, however, the Present Situation Index and the Expectations Index did not move in tandem: while there are higher hopes for the future, perceptions of the present have deteriorated (see Chart 1).

In March 2021, Georgian power plants generated 661 mln. kWh of electricity. This represents a 24% decrease in total generation, compared to the previous year (March 2020, the total generation was 867 mln. kWh). The decrease in generation on a yearly basis comes from the decrease of 33% in hydropower generation, however, the generation of thermal and wind power have increased by 16% and 0.9%, respectively.

Between April 19-21, ISET PI’s Agricultural and Rural Policy Research Center (APRC) conducted training with representatives from the parliament’s Agrarian Issues Committee. These meetings were supported by the UNDP as part of their EU project – Consolidation of Parliamentary Democracy in Georgia.

World economies hampered by the pandemic; countries facing public healthcare crises, with millions killed by COVID-19; thousands of cities under lockdown; social distancing and transformed social practices; countless institutions functioning online; the youth spending endless days and nights in front of computer screens; and, globally, over a year of online education. This is the reality in many countries around the world, including Georgia, in the spring of 2021.