According to the application published on the State Procurement Agency’s website, plans are underway to construct two new ropeways in the scenic Gudauri region. The project will be spearheaded by MTA, a company under the Ministry of Economy’s jurisdiction.
Currently, Gudauri operates only one gondola-type cable car, which is consistently overwhelmed during the winter season and struggles to meet the increasing demand. To address this issue, the government intends to install two additional cable cars in the area. MTA’s primary objective is to offer visitors a seamless ascent to Mount Vartsla through these cable cars, with the new infrastructure being designed to serve up to 1,800 people per hour.
Due to the urgency of the project, the decision has been made to sign a contract with a supplier without conducting a tender process.
“The development of sports tourism is defined as one of the country’s priorities; as proof, Georgia hosted the World Championship (Bakuriani 2023) at the highest level, in freestyle snowboarding and freeski, therefore, it took an honorable place on the world map in the direction of winter tourism and sports,” a Ministry of Economy statement reads. “The successfully held championship brought the attention of the FIS to Georgia, and that is why the decision was made by the FIS to include Georgia, specifically Gudauri and Bakuriani, in the annual calendar, among the leading countries, and now for the first time in Gudauri the stage of the international World Cup will be held in Snowboard Cross. which the International Skiing Federation confirmed in the annual sports calendar. The mentioned fact is very important, both for the development of winter resorts and sports, and for the promotion of Georgia.
“The implementation of the measures stipulated by the decree will contribute to the development of the mountain-ski resorts of Georgia, the encouragement of economic activity, the creation of additional jobs and the establishment of a competitive and stable investment environment in Gudauri. In addition, the construction of two new chairlifts on Mount Vartsla and the corresponding infrastructure will diversify the services in the Gudauri resort, which will contribute to the rapid development of the resort, the improvement of the existing infrastructure and, accordingly, the increase in the popularity of the resort both inside the country and abroad, which will positively affect the awareness of Georgian mountain and ski resorts and increase their competitiveness at the international level. Taking into account the above, the company’s goal is for the mountain-ski resorts in Georgia to improve the level of management and reach international standards in the field of safety and service, which will contribute to getting a proper experience, creating a pleasant and favorable environment for visitors, and increasing their confidence. The construction of new, modern high-standard and high-capacity cableways and ski tracks in the Gudauri resort will have a direct proportional impact on the income of the local population, small and medium-sized businesses, investors, the company and the state.
“Based on the above, taking into account the growing number of visitors and the promotion of international events, it is advisable to organize chairlifts in New Gudauri. The company developed a technical task and determined the criteria and characteristics, according to which two cableways of approximately 1249 and 1369 meters in length should be implemented, which will start from New Gudauri and end at the front slope of the trails, with 6-seater shielded (“Babliani”) cable cars with a capacity of no less than 1,800 people per hour,” the statement said.
By Mariam Gorkelashvili
