OREANDA-NEWS. The groundbreaking ceremony for the first combined natural gas cycle plant of Georgia that will be constructed by Calik Enerji was held in Georgia. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili gave a speech in the ceremony of the project that will be carried out by Calik Enerji, Georgian Investment Fund and Georgian Ministry of Energy cooperation. During his speech Irakli Garibashvili said "We are initiating another investment that will end the foreign energy source dependency of Georgia and even initiate export operations to the neighbor countries."

Calik Holding Chairman Ahmet Calik stated in his speech that they are planning to put this power plant with 230 MW power into service as of the autumn of 2015. "This is our first project in Georgia. The positive and sincere approaches of the esteemed Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, and other officers really moved us. It feels like home in here. Thus we established a 50 percent partnership with Georgian Investment Fund and even began discussing further projects and investments. We want to be permanent in Georgia and to make investments." said Ahmet Calik.

The groundbreaking ceremony of Gardabani Combined Cycle Plant that will be constructed by Calik Enerji was held with the participation of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, Georgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy Kakha Kaladze, Georgian Investment Fund President Irakli Kovzanadze, Turkey's Counselor at its Georgian Embassy Aydin Acikel, Calik Holding Chairman Ahmet Calik, Calik Enerji General Manager Osman Saim Dinc and numerous Georgian officers. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, who gave a speech during this ceremony, said "Welcome to your second home" to Calik Enerji and talked about the importance of this project for Georgia. And Georgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy Kakha Kaladze named their main goals as freeing Georgia from foreign-source dependency in energy and then beginning to export electricity to their neighbor countries. Georgian Investment Fund President Irakli Kovzanadze recorded that they target an increase to 1.7 billion kWh in annual energy production of Georgia with this advanced plant that will employ a total of 600 individuals.

Calik Holding Chairman Ahmet Calik, who also made a speech during the ceremony, spoke highly of the political and economical stability achieved by Georgia especially in the last period. "It feels like home in Georgia." said Ahmet Calik. "We have especially sincere relations that started with Prime Minister Mr. Ivanishvili and continued with Prime Minister Garibaldi and his team. We are highly moved by their approach. We are already carrying out negotiations for cooperating in many other fields."