Kutaisi is the capital of the western region of Imereti and is located in the center of Georgia, 221 kilometers and about a two-hour drive west of Tbilisi on the Rioni River.
The city is one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, and it is Georgia’s third-most populous after Tbilisi and Batumi.
It has long served as a regional center for the greater Imereti area, serving as a commercial hub for the surrounding countryside. In recent years, the city has begun to attract increased investment from a variety of multinational corporations.
Kutaisi has two free industrial zones: the Kutaisi free industrial zone (Kutaisi FIZ) and the Hualing free industrial zone (Hualing FIZ) (Hualing FIZ). Both free industrial zones provide numerous incentives to investors, such as tax breaks and lower trade barriers.
AE Solar, a German solar panel manufacturer, opened a new fully automated manufacturing line in Kutaisi in 2019. With a total annual output of 500 MW, it is Europe’s largest solar panel factory under one roof.
David the Builder Kutaisi International Airport is located 14 kilometers west of the city of Kutaisi. It is one of three international airports in Georgia at the moment.
Kutaisi also has two main railway stations, as well as numerous smaller ones. Direct inter-city and suburban railway services are available to Tbilisi-Central and other major cities throughout the country.
Kutaisi offers access to a market of over 900,000 customers, low property prices and labor costs, and multimodal transportation infrastructure that is also being upgraded and expanded. Infrastructure projects for business development – Up to 1 billion GEL is being spent on modernizing the city’s infrastructure, allowing Kutaisi to become a city of international trade and transit while also significantly increasing its tourism potential.
Kutaisi is the only city in western Georgia with large areas (over 2400 hectares) of available land for business development, where industry, logistics, service, and tourism sectors can all develop.
Kutaisi has traditionally served as the economic and social center of western Georgia, and it is currently being transformed into a trade, logistics, education, and healthcare hub for the people and businesses of western Georgia. Kutaisi is still a moderate cost city when compared to Tbilisi and Batumi, with plenty of available land, affordable real estate, and an accessible workforce.
Kutaisi’s tourism potential is boosted by its surrounding area, which contains over 50 tourist attractions. To realize this potential, a special Destination Management Organization was formed, with the goal of developing products and services for tourists and generally enhancing tourism development.
Since the opening of its international airport, Kutaisi’s tourism development has been significantly boosted. The number of travelers using Kutaisi International Airport is increasing year after year, with the airport receiving 796,063 passengers in 2022 and the number of regular flights and destinations offered increasing each year.
The Georgian government is building transportation infrastructure that will boost Kutaisi’s potential as a transportation-logistics and tourism hub.
A new terminal and railway station at Kutaisi International Airport would significantly increase passenger traffic. Together with the international airport and other existing transportation infrastructure, the completion of the East-West Highway and the establishment of a multimodal logistics hub will eventually establish Kutaisi as the main logistics center in western Georgia.