David Khidasheli, the partner of the sanctioned Russian oligarch Vladimir Evtushenkov, announces that he is leaving the game farming business in Georgia, and he has sold the company HG Capra Caucasica LLC and, by extension, the license obtained for Racha and Kvemo Svaneti forests.
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Khidasheli volunteered a statement to various media outlets:
‘‘Recently, the government threatened to review and suspend the businessman's license. As the company itself stated, the case was not about non-fulfillment of conditions, but about misunderstandings created by the state. The Ministry of Agriculture demanded the fulfillment of conditions that were not properly defined and the state failed fulfill its obligations.
The Department of Environment issued a statement back in July 20 that the violation protocols were issued against businessman Davit Khidasheli's company HG Capra Caucasica. According to the statement, the company failed the obligation of drawing up a development plan for the licensed area and submitting this plan to the state.
Today, information was released that in the days following the upheaval, Davit Khidasheli sold the hunting license and the company to avoid the heat, further court proceedings, and needlessly sullying his reputation. That is, the contract is already being signed and in the next week it will become known that one of the stakeholders is involved with hunting farms in Spain; another Georgian company will also become a shareholder,’’ said the company statement.
‘‘If they don’t care for my investments, so be it. Many other countries will accept my investments with open arms.
The time will show everyone that I am neither tied to the Kremlin nor to Georgian Dream,’’ Khidasheli told the media.
There are no records regarding the possible sale of HG Capra Caucasica in the public registry as of yet.
Mountain Stories first broke the news of the transfer of 104,712 hectares of forest in Racha and Kvemo Svaneti for 49 years to a partner of a sanctioned Russian oligarchon April 22, 2022.
On July 17, 2023, Mountain Stories published a journalistic investigation - occupation of Racha forests, where many violations of the law, facts of falsification of documents for the transfer of forests to Khidasheli, and security-related problems were revealed. The forests transferred to Khidasheli are adjacent to the Russian-Georgian border and the Tskhinvali region already occupied by Russia.
On July 19, the Department of Environmental Supervision announced that due to the violation of the obligations assigned to David Khidasheli's company, administrative offense protocols were drawn up. The Ambrolauri District Court did not meet the request of the Environmental Supervision Department to fine the Khidasheli company, which the department appealed to the Kutaisi Court of Appeals.
On July 24, Green Alternative and the Center of Civil Activities appealed to the General Prosecutor's Office. The non-governmental organizations requested the initiation of an investigation into the possible facts of official fraud and bribery against the former mayor of Oni municipality, Emzar Sabanadze, and his first deputy, Dimitri Sakvarelidze.
On July 26, the members of the Parliament of Georgia Tamar Kordzaia, Teona Akubardia, and Khatuna Samnidze held a press conference and demanded an investigation of violations from the prosecutor's office. The MPs also talked about security-related challenges. They got to know the details of the case on the spot and met the residents of the villages. The deputies announced that they would summon the responsible ministers to the parliament in the autumn session.
In August, the residents of Racha villages organized the "to save the Rioni Valley" movement and started a protest demanding the cancellation of the illegal decision from the government.
On September 13, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture announced that the transfer of Racha forests to the Khidasheli company has been suspended.
On October 22, the Deputy Minister of Environmental Protection and Agriculture Nino Tandilashvili said at a briefing that the government was planning to establish an area with a special protection status in Racha, which includes the forests of Racha and the surrounding areas of the villages. According to her, the creation of a protected area will not be compatible with the hunting farm license issued to David Khidasheli before, and the Ministry is taking appropriate measures to revoke it.
