Poti Sea Port

The Poti Sea Port ( _ka. ფოთის საზღვაო ნავსადგური, "p’ot’is sazghvao navsadguri") is a major seaport and harbor off the eastern Black Sea coast at the mouth of the Rioni River in Poti, Georgia. Its UN/LOCODE is GEPTI and is located at coord|42|9|18|N|41|39|16|E

The Poti seaport is a cross point of the Trans-Caucasian Corridor/TRACECA, a multinational project which goes through Tashkent – Ashgabat – Türkmenbaşy – Baku and Poti to Romanian port of Constanţa and Bulgarian port Varna, thus linking the landlocked countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus to Eastern Europe.

The construction of a seaport at Poti was conceived shortly after the Russian Empire conquered the town from the Ottoman Empire in 1828. In 1858, Poti was granted the status of a port city, but it was not until 1899 when, under the patronage of the mayor of Poti Niko Nikoladze, the construction entered the sprint stages and was basically complete by 1907. The seaport has since reconstructed several times, most recently under the sponsorship of the Dutch government and the European Union. [ [http://www.potiseaport.com/?psp-id=12 Poti Sea Port: History] . Poti Sea Port website. Accessed on April 21 2008.]

In 2007, the total throughput was 7.7 million tons and container handling was 185,000 TEU. [ [http://www.potiseaport.com/storage/assets/PDF/Bro-2007.zip Poti Sea Port: Annual Figures – 2007] . Poti Sea Port website. Accessed on April 21 2008.]

In April 2008, Georgia sold a 51% stake of the Poti port area to the Investment Authority of the UAE’s Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) emirate to develop a free economic zone (FEZ) in a 49-year management concession, and to manage a new port terminal. The creation of a new FEZ was officially inaugurated by the President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili on April 15 2008. [Christina Tashkevich (April 16 2008). [http://www.messenger.com.ge/issues/1588_april_16_2008/1588_poti.html President inaugurates Poti port project] . "The Messenger Online". Accessed on April 19, 2008.]

ee also

* Kulevi Oil Terminal

References

External links

* [http://maradgeorgia.org/en/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=5&id=21&Itemid=41 Poti Sea Port chart] . "Maritime Transport Department of Georgia". Accessed on May 2 2008.