May.7--GEORGIA's inland capital of Tbilisi, far away from the Black Sea ports of Poti and Batumiin, is emerging as the key logistics hub of the country with better connections to other national urban centres as well as Azerbaijan, Armenia and other central Asian nations.
    "Out of 4.5 million tons of containerised cargo which moves in Georgia - 50 per cent have a relationship with Tbilisi. Tbilisi Logistics Centre (TLC) will cater for the demand for first class warehouses. It will be focused on import warehousing and commissioning/distribution of consumer goods," said TransCare AG chief executive Ralf Jahncke.
    "The centre has a direct railway connection to Georgia Black Sea ports - direct railway connection to Azerbaijan and Armenia to cut transport costs and consolidate different types of cargo storage into one facility," said Mr Jahncke.
    Today, old renovated Soviet-era storage facilities, with a few private centres built by companies will soon be augmented by the TLC, scheduled to open by the end of 2013, reported Tbilisi's The Financial newspaper.
    Near the Avchala Railway Station on the Tbilisi Railway Bypass Project, the TLC will stand as a centre for multi-modal transport in the region, said the report. The project was developed as a result of a joint venture between Germany's TransCare AG and TLC Property Management, the latter being a landowner and co-investor.
    With US$26 million to $38 million to be invested, the centre is expected to generate a return of 25-35 per cent in the coming seven to eight years. The main shareholder is TLCPM (45 per cent), while five per cent of the funding was secured by TransCare AG, said the report, which added that the project is supported by the US Government's Economic Prosperity Initiative (EPI).

(Source:shippingazette)