TBILISI, January 26 (RIA Novosti) - There is currently a 600-megawatt power shortfall in the Caucasus republic of Georgia following a major grid failure that led to blackouts in the capital and eastern regions, the country's state-owned electricity company said Thursday.
At a session convened by the Georgian State Energy System to address the energy crisis, leaders from most of the country's energy companies met, along with Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili, Chief Prosecutor Zurab Adeishvili, and Tbilisi Mayor Gigi Ugulava.
The energy crisis began on January 22 when explosions in a natural gas pipeline and a power line in southern Russia cut off Russian gas and electricity supplies to Georgia and Armenia. The crisis escalated when a major power failure in the early hours of Thursday in Georgia left the capital, Tbilisi, without electricity.
Currently, 95% of consumers in Tbilisi are without power, while electricity in the country's western region has been restricted to vital facilities, and the east has been almost entirely cut off.
