TheWorld Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a $35 million loan for the first phase of the Enhancing Energy Security through Power Interconnection and Renewable Energy (ESPIRE) Program for Georgia.
The ESPIRE Program consists of three phases with a potential financing envelope of up to $500 million that seeks to improve Georgia’s institutional capacity for the development of submarine cable projects, strengthen Georgia’s domestic power transmission system, and establish a direct electricity interconnection between the South Caucasus and Southeast Europe. Additionally, the parallel digital interconnection would reduce internet connection costs, improve bandwidth, and generally enhance international digital connectivity across the Black Sea.
The ESPIRE Program is designed to support the next steps in the preparation of a potential Black Sea Submarine Cable (BSSC) Project,which aims to establish parallel electricity and fiber-optic submarine cable interconnections across the Black Sea of Ukraine, with landing points in Georgia and Romania.