U.S. company Honeywell becomes refining licensor for first refinery in Georgia
TBILISI. Feb 20 (Interfax) - The U.S. technology conglomerate Honeywell International has signed an agreement with Black Sea Petroleum (BSP), the company implementing the project to build Georgia's first oil refinery, for the design and licensing of oil refining, the Georgian company said.
"The agreement covers the design and licensing of a major oil refinery, which is a historic step forward for both the company and the development of Georgia's energy sector," BSP said in a press release.
Under the agreement, Honeywell will provide BSP with licenses for technological processes, basic design, specialized equipment and catalysts, enabling the Georgian refinery to produce aviation fuel, gasoline, diesel fuel and marine fuel in accordance with international standards.
The first phase of the refinery in Kulevi, with a capacity of 1.2 million tonnes of oil per year, has been commissioned, BSP said. Construction of the second phase is currently underway; its commissioning will increase the plant's capacity to 3.3 million tonnes per year. Plans are in place to increase it to 4.5 million tonnes in the future.
Black Sea Petroleum is constructing the refinery near the oil terminal of the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOCAR) in the port of Kulevi. Total investment in the project is estimated at $700 million. The first phase of the project is financed by a syndicated loan of $110 million from Georgian commercial banks.
According to Georgian media, the main shareholder of BSP is Georgia's MK Capital, owned by Maka Asatiani. At the end of September last year, former Georgian Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili was appointed chairman of the supervisory board of the refinery in Kulevi.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on February 10 that he is ready for consultations with the European Union regarding possible sanctions against the port of Kulevi as part of the twentieth package of sanctions against Russia. According to Georgian media, at the end of 2025, oil supplies from Russia to the oil terminal in Kulevi resumed, from where it was transported to the new terminal of the Kulevi refinery.
Honeywell is U.S. industrial and technology conglomerate operating in the fields of energy, aerospace technologies, industrial automation and digital solutions. The company collaborates with the world's largest energy companies.
