Georgia may collaborate with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on the construction of the Anaklia port’s land infrastructure, Finance Minister Lasha Khutsishvili stated during the ADB’s 58th Annual Meeting in Milan. Khutsishvili emphasized that while other international financial institutions could also be involved, the ADB has expressed a willingness to provide Georgia with a sovereign loan to support the project.

“The Anaklia port is currently financed through the state budget. We have already allocated 220 million GEL for the initial phase, which covers the development of water infrastructure. This segment will be 100% state-owned,” Khutsishvili explained.

The second phase, focused on land infrastructure, will involve private-sector participation. The state plans to maintain a 51% controlling stake, while the selected partner will hold a 49% share. In this context, the ADB may provide sovereign financing directly to the Georgian government, which will in turn allocate funds through the national budget. The ADB, however, will not be a direct participant in the Anaklia project itself.

Khutsishvili stressed that Anaklia is a "purely Georgian deep-water port project" with strategic national importance. “We have a long-standing model with the ADB and similar institutions—when funding is provided on a sovereign basis, the state is the borrower and the project executor. The port will remain under Georgian control,” he said.

Meanwhile, construction of the port’s maritime infrastructure is being led by Belgian company Jan De Nul, which won an international tender. The project includes deepening the port's water area and building a breakwater. According to the Ministry of Economy, Anaklia Port is expected to receive its first ship in 2029.