TBILISI – U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Stephen M. Haykin joined First Deputy Minister of Energy Mariam Valishvili to open a workshop on energy policy and strategic planning on Tuesday, March 6 at the Tbilisi Marriott hotel.

The workshop featured analyses of energy system costs, imports, power plant additions, investment requirements, and carbon emissions for Georgia over the next twenty years. After the presentation of Regional Energy Planning Project

by USAID, IRG and WEG planning team presented the MARKAL model capacities, sector development scenarios and their main indications. Following the presentationს, there was an open discussion on the evolution of Georgian energy system. Representatives from the Georgian government, energy regulatory bodies, state and private sector energy companies, environmental NGOs, and local and international energy experts participated in the workshop.

USAID is working with the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of Georgia to improve strategic planning in Georgia’s energy sector in the context of energy security and diversity, economic competitiveness, and climate change.