In the January-July period of 2023, Georgia witnessed notable upticks in the import of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and petroleum bitumen. The data from the Union of Petroleum Products Importers reveals that 31.50 thousand tons of LPG were imported, reflecting a substantial increase of 44.2% compared to the corresponding period in the previous year. The data also highlights that an overwhelming 99.6% of the imported liquefied gases originated from Russia.
Concerning petroleum bitumen imports, the volume reached 61.1 thousand tons during the seven-month duration, marking a growth of 22.2% in comparison to the previous year.
Breaking down the sources of petroleum bitumen imports:
– Russia accounted for 27.1 thousand tons (44.4% of total imports)
– Iraq – 19.4 thousand tons (31.7%)
– Turkey – 13.1 thousand tons (21.4%)
– Azerbaijan – 1.4 thousand tons (2.3%)
– Turkmenistan – 0.1 thousand tons (0.2%)
These figures indicate a substantial surge in the import of both LPG and petroleum bitumen in Georgia during the specified period. The increase in LPG imports can be largely attributed to the intensified purchases from Russia, while the import of petroleum bitumen also displayed notable growth.
By Mariam Gorkhelashvili
