---
title: "Oil and Gas Law"
url: "https://legal.ge/en/service/licensing-and-regulatory-permits-en/oil-and-gas-law-641-en"
field: "Licensing & Regulatory Permits"
description: "Oil and gas licences under the law of Georgia: the general licence, the 25-year term, the activity licence application and refusal grounds. Legal.ge."
reviewed: "2026-07-09"
updated: "2026-10-14"
publisher: "legal.ge"
---

# Oil and Gas Law

> Source: legal.ge, https://legal.ge/en/service/licensing-and-regulatory-permits-en/oil-and-gas-law-641-en

## The General Licence and the Issuing Authority

The Law of Georgia on Oil and Gas regulates oil and gas operations through a system of licences, and the central figure of that system is the Agency. Under Article 15-1 of the law, the general licence for the use of oil and gas resources is issued by the Agency. The same principle is repeated at the level of activity licences: under Article 25-5, the activity licence is likewise issued by the Agency. For an investor this means that every administrative door is connected to a single authority, and it is the Agency’s decision that determines whether the project enters the implementation phase.

The general licence is not granted arbitrarily but on the basis of a contract: under Article 19, the Agency issues the general licence on the basis of the contract, within one month of its signature, and the conditions of the licence must be identical to the conditions of the contract. From this follows a practical rule: the text of the contract is not merely a commercial document — it is directly transformed into the conditions of the licence, which is why each of its provisions must be drafted with legal scrutiny. The investor pays a licence fee, and to participate in a tender or auction the applicant reimburses the costs of holding it in the manner established by the Agency. The licence fee is not compensated with compensation oil and gas.

The full text is available on legal.ge after signing in: https://legal.ge/en/service/licensing-and-regulatory-permits-en/oil-and-gas-law-641-en

### Who issues oil and gas licences?

Both the general and the activity licence are issued by the Agency — the former on the basis of the contract, within one month of its signature.

### What is the maximum duration of a licence?

The contract and general licence do not exceed 25 years; a temporary extension of up to five years is possible where needed, and the activity licence may be extended by not more than 10 years.

### How does force majeure affect the terms?

During force majeure the conditions of the contract and licence do not operate, and the period of force majeure and the time needed to compensate the damage are added to the term.

### What happens without the landowner’s consent?

The application must include the landowner’s prior written consent; a disagreement with the landowner is a ground for refusing the licence.