Nenskra hydropower project environmental and social impact assessment report disclosure process continues

Nenskra hydropower project environmental and social impact assessment report disclosure process continues

Nenskra Hydropower Project company JSC Nenskra Hydro continues the disclosure process of its Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) Report.

The results of supplementary studies, on which the report is based, were disclosed in March 2017. The entire package of the documents is available online both in Georgian and English languages on the Project company’s website. Moreover, hard copies of all 10 volumes of the report are available for all the stakeholders at the Project company’s office in Tbilisi, at the special informational centers in the villages of Chuberi and Nakra in Mestia municipality, as well as Mestia municipality office.

The report comprises of supplementary studies carried out in accordance to the high standards of the International Financial Institutions, such as EBRD (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development), ADB (Asian Development Bank), EIB (European Investment Bank), KDB (Korean Development Bank), SACE (Italian Export Credit Agency) and AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

It is noteworthy, that Nenskra Hydropower Project takes into consideration the needs and interests of the local population of Nenskra and Nakra valleys: there is absolutely no resettlement to be carried out, at the same time, Project aims at employing a vast number of the locals. In addition to this, a special Community Investment Strategy was created, that aims to invest into infrastructural, agricultural, educational and other sectors in the valleys.

The ESIA report disclosure process will continue for another several month.

“During this period of time our first priority is to inform the local population of Nenskra and Nakra valleys on the findings in the report, as well as the planned mitigation measures. A team that is made up of our specialists, as well as external experts is working to make this happen. We have already conducted approximately 20 meetings with the local population in both valleys, in a form of community meetings, public hearings and even individual meetings when necessary. This is a mutual process, during the meetings we do our best to give the comprehensive answers to all the questions. At the same time, we are keeping track of all the comments from the local population, so we can take them into consideration during the project implementation process”, JSC Nenskra Hydro Chief Operations Officer, Mr. Teimuraz Kopadze states.

JSC Nenskra Hydro is a special purpose vehicle established in Georgia in 2015 as a result of cooperation between South Korean state company K-Water and JSC Partnership Fund. The purpose of the company is to construct the Nenskra Hydropower Plant in Nenskra and Nakra rivers’ valleys in Mestia Municipality of Svaneti region. The power plant will generate 1.2 GWh of electricity, which will be fully consumed by the local market.