The Kulevi oil refinery, which was expected to begin operations in March 2025, has come under the spotlight of international media.
“Russian company Russneft has this month sent its first shipment of oil to a new refinery opened in Kulevi, Georgia,” Reuters reported on October 21, citing LSEG shipping data and industry sources.
The import of Russian oil into the Port of Kulevi was also confirmed by Georgia’s Revenue Service under the Ministry of Finance.
“On October 2, the motor tanker KAYSERI, sailing under the Panamanian flag, entered the Kulevi Sea Port from a port of the Russian Federation, carrying up to 100,000 tons of crude oil sent by one of the Russian companies [the agency refrains from naming companies and disclosing information containing tax secrecy] for placement under import customs procedures.
Following inspections conducted by the Maritime Transport Agency and the Revenue Service, it has been confirmed that neither the vessel nor its owning company, nor the sender and recipient companies of the cargo, are subject to international sanctions [information available from open sources]. Accordingly, for the purposes of further customs control procedures, the cargo was unloaded into a temporary customs storage warehouse,” the Revenue Service said in a statement released on October 21.
The agency did not name the sender or recipient companies, citing restrictions related to the disclosure of tax-secret information.
The Kulevi oil refinery itself has also issued no statement regarding ownership of the cargo.
As for the storage location of the oil, according to the official classifier of storage facilities published on the Revenue Service’s website, the only customs warehouse in the village of Kulevi, Khobi Municipality, is located on the territory of LLC Black Sea Terminal (the Kulevi oil terminal).
This company is owned by the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR).
What Is Happening at the Kulevi Oil Refinery Now
After passing the city of Poti and crossing the Rioni River, navigation maps show two roads leading toward the Kulevi oil refinery—one longer, one shorter. At the turnoff to the shorter road, there is a bus stop, where we stopped to check whether we were heading in the right direction.
“Are you looking for the oil refinery that Bidzina Ivanishvili is building? Yes, you’re going the right way,” a man standing at the stop told us, pointing the direction with his hand. “It’s a gravel road you’ll reach the refinery in 15–20 minutes.”
The road leading to the oil refinery runs along the boundary of Kolkheti National Park and follows a railway line. This is the shortest route connecting the Poti and Kulevi terminals.
The oil refinery stands in the heart of Kolkheti National Park. The refinery’s territory is not yet fully fenced, including the area where oil pumping pipelines run from the refinery to the Kulevi oil terminal.
The pipelines and a newly built service road run parallel along the Black Sea coast toward the terminal.
The land on which the refinery is being built is owned by Black Sea Petroleum. Adjacent land plots and the land used for the pipeline have been transferred by the state to Black Sea Petroleum under construction and usufruct rights for a period of 44–49 years.
According to data from the Public Registry, the area where a railway line is to be constructed for the refinery lies within the state forest fund and has been transferred to Black Sea Petroleum for use for up to 44 years following the expiration of a five-year special forest-use permit allowing the cutting of alder trees for special purposes.
Is the Oil Refinery Operating?
Did the Kulevi oil refinery begin operations in March, as planned? This was the question Batumelebi posed to nearly all parties connected with the refinery.
All questions were left unanswered by the general director of Black Sea Petroleum. No response was received from a member of the supervisory board or from the director of one of the owner companies.
We also addressed this question to the Georgian Development Fund, a state-established entity and a co-partner in the project.
“The requested information is directly related to the enterprise’s commercial activities; therefore, please contact the enterprise itself on these matters,” the Georgian Development Fund replied.
“Trial-type operations are underway; it has not yet been officially opened,” was the only comment provided by the Khobi Municipality City Hall. The refinery site falls within the municipality’s administrative boundaries.
If the refinery is not operating, where did more than 100,000 tons of crude oil go? And if it is operating, was this oil processed at the refinery? These questions also remain unanswered by all responsible parties.
Who Owns the Kulevi Oil Refinery?
The Kulevi oil terminal and the Kulevi oil refinery are two separate facilities located approximately five kilometers apart.
The Kulevi oil terminal belongs to Azerbaijan’s SOCAR, while the Kulevi oil refinery—still under construction belongs to Black Sea Petroleum, whose founder and main shareholder is a company owned by designer Maka Asatiani.
According to the Public Registry, 70.66% of Black Sea Petroleum is owned by LLC MK Capital, and 29.34% by LLC Dunami.
Seventy percent of MK Capital is owned by Maka Asatiani, while 30% belongs to LLC Trade Stone Iberia.
LLC Dunami is 100% owned by Davit Potskhveria, who also serves as the general director of Black Sea Petroleum.
Members of Black Sea Petroleum’s supervisory board include former Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Levan Davitashvili; Vakhtang Chakhnashvili, founder of the Georgia–China Regional Cooperation Association; and Maka Asatiani’s husband, businessman Konstantine Gogelia, who works in Russia.
The company’s general director is Davit Potskhveria, and its director is Mikheil Chkuaseli.
All shares of Black Sea Petroleum have been pledged as collateral for USD 50 million.
The pledge agreement was signed on July 25, 2024, between Basisbank, Cartu Bank, Halyk Bank, the Georgian Development Fund, LLC Trade Stone Iberia, and Black Sea Petroleum.
Represented by Mikheil Chkuaseli and Maka Asatiani’s representative Konstantine Gogelia, Trade Stone Iberia pledged 100% of Black Sea Petroleum’s shares for 360 months—30 years.
It should be noted that the Georgian Development Fund is state-owned. Of the USD 50 million, at least USD 5 million comes from this state fund.
About a year ago, the Georgian government approved decisions taken by the supervisory board of the Georgian Development Fund regarding the Black Sea Petroleum refinery project and issued a decree classifying all project-related information, including the explanatory note, as a commercial secret.
Another government decree states that “without the consent of the Government of Georgia, the amount of financing to be provided by JSC Georgian Development Fund may not exceed USD 5 million… The documentation and information submitted for the issuance of this decree, including the explanatory note, shall be considered a commercial secret.”
State Support for Black Sea Petroleum
“The Kulevi oil refinery project is the largest private investment project in the history of independent Georgia and will be an extremely important asset for our country’s economy,” Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said on October 22, 2024, at the project’s presentation.
According to official information released at the presentation, the budget for the first stage of construction is USD 110 million, while the total investment volume of the project amounts to USD 700 million.
“By the end of 2028, the enterprise will fully implement high-tech processing of crude oil and petroleum products. After that, Black Sea Petroleum will be able to supply various petroleum products to the local market and export products to Europe and other global markets,” the Georgian government said.
The project presentation was held four days before the 2024 parliamentary elections.
Photos from the presentation show Maka Asatiani, the refinery’s largest shareholder, seated next to the prime minister. In the next row sits businessman Konstantine Gogelia, who works in Russia, alongside Davit Potskhveria, the company’s general director.
According to the photos, Kakhy Zhordania, Maka Asatiani’s son from her first marriage, was also present.
A year after the presentation, in October of this year, Zhordania’s name appeared in an investigation by the Russian outlet Proekt, which reported alleged links between the refinery owner’s family and Russia’s military intelligence leadership.
According to Proekt, Kakhy Zhordania, son of refinery founder Maka Asatiani, runs joint businesses in Russia with Sergei Alekseev, the son of Vladimir Alekseev, First Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU).
Proekt reports that Zhordania was involved in the oil business. From 2016 to 2023, he owned the Russian oil trader Oil Energy Group, which at the time had annual revenues of 17.5 billion rubles (USD 215.3 million).
In addition, since 2018 Zhordania has owned a 25% stake in SDO-Logistik, a company engaged in the road transportation of petroleum products. The company’s revenue in 2024 amounted to 838 million rubles (USD 10.4 million).
According to Proekt, Zhordania’s business partner and majority shareholder (51%) in SDO-Logistik is Sergei Alekseev the son of Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseev, First Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU).
According to Proekt, there are links between the leadership of Russia’s military intelligence (GRU) and the family that owns the Kulevi oil refinery.
History of the Refinery Project
Construction of an oil refinery in Kulevi was first planned in 2012. A purchase agreement was signed on June 26, 2012, between Georgia’s Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development and SOCAR Georgia Investments.
The project was not implemented, and the obligation was transferred to Phase Oil LLC, which also failed to fulfill it.
According to BMG.ge, the state first fined Phase Oil and later wrote off more than USD 20 million in penalties.
Ultimately, the refinery project was transferred to Black Sea Petroleum in 2023, and an official presentation was held in 2024.
Regulatory Changes for the Kulevi Refinery
On October 16, 2025, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze issued a decree amending existing regulations related to diesel fuel imports.
As a result of the change, the import of lower-quality diesel fuel was permitted.
“Diesel fuel imported by the holder of an oil processing license and an oil refinery with a minimum annual processing capacity of 1 million tons may fail to meet the standards established by this decree, provided that such diesel fuel is used exclusively within the scope of licensed activities,” the decree states.
The only refinery capable of processing such volumes is the Kulevi oil refinery.
Conflict of Interest
On October 22, 2024, Levan Davitashvili was First Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development. In that capacity, he attended the refinery’s presentation.
He resigned from office on June 24, 2025.
On September 26, 2025, Levan Davitashvili was appointed chairman of the supervisory board of Black Sea Petroleum, the company building the Kulevi oil refinery.
Georgia’s Law on Combating Corruption establishes key principles for preventing, detecting, and suppressing conflicts of interest and corruption in public institutions.
Under the law, a public official who leaves public service may not, for one year after dismissal, begin work in or conduct activities for an enterprise that they systematically supervised in an official capacity during the previous three years. During this period, they are also prohibited from receiving income from such an institution or enterprise.
TV company Formula asked Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze whether Davitashvili’s work on the supervisory board of a company he oversaw as minister constituted a legal violation.
“You can inquire and take appropriate measuresI don’t know. If the law is being violated, then the law must be enforced, but I don’t know. I don’t know whether it contradicts the law or not; let’s find out together. You can contact the relevant company, and if the law has been violated, the company should take measures,” Kobakhidze replied.
Questions That Remain Unanswered
Batumelebi contacted Black Sea Petroleum’s general director, Davit Potskhveria, for comment. We also sent him a message to the phone number listed in the company’s documentation, explaining the issues on which we sought comment. He has not responded.
We have also received no response to questions sent to Black Sea Petroleum via its official email address regarding the Kulevi oil refinery.
If responses are received, they will be published here.
As for Kakhy Zhordania, Batumelebi was unable to establish contact with him.