Tkvarcheli ( ka, ტყვარჩელი ; , ''Tqwarchal''; Ткуарчал (Tkuarchal) , ''Tkvarcheli'') is a town in

Abkhazia Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...

, a breakaway region of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. It is situated on the river Ghalidzga and a railway connects it with Ochamchire. Akarmara, an area within the town, is a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

with abandoned apartments and factories which became uninhabited in the early 1990s due to the War in Abkhazia (1992-1993), and is home to just 35 residents today.Inal Khashi
Tkuarchal, Abkhazia – a former coal capital trying to survive
05.09.2020 JAMnews

History

Coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

, which began in the area in 1935, grew in importance during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, especially after the

Donbas The Donbas (, ; ) or Donbass ( ) is a historical, cultural, and economic region in eastern Ukraine. The majority of the Donbas is occupied by Russia as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War. The word ''Donbas'' is a portmanteau formed fr ...

was lost during the German invasion of the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Tkvarcheli was given town status on 9 April 1942. During the War in Abkhazia (1992–93), Tkvarcheli withstood, through Russian military aid, a

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

by the Georgian forces. Since 1995, it has been the center of the newly formed Tkvarcheli District. On 27 September 2008, President Sergei Bagapsh awarded it the honorary title of Hero City.

Industry

Coal mining has been the town's main industry, although now the Soviet mines are closed and coal is quarried only by the Abkhaz- Turkish Tamsaş company using the

open pit Open-pit mining, also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining, is a surface mining technique that extracts rock or minerals from the earth. Open-pit mines are used when deposits of commercially useful ore or ...

method. Tamsaş's tax payments account for 75% of the Tkvarcheli district's budget however, the company was criticized for neglecting environmental requirements. Georgia regards all this investment as illegal, in clear violation of the 1996 CIS restrictionsAbkhazia Today.
''The

International Crisis Group The International Crisis Group (ICG; also known as the Crisis Group) is a global non-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 1995. It is a think tank, used by policymakers and academics, conducting research and analysis on global crises. ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Report N°176, 15 September 2006''. Retrieved on September 30, 2007. ''Free registration needed to view full report'' and has arrested several vessels, loaded with coal from Tkvarcheli, in its

territorial waters Territorial waters are informally an area of water where a sovereign state has jurisdiction, including internal waters, the territorial sea, the contiguous zone, the exclusive economic zone, and potentially the extended continental shelf ( ...

, a measure that has reportedly brought Tamsaş to the verge of bankruptcy.

Demography

The town's population was 21,744 in 1989. The three main ethnic groups were Abkhaz (42.3%),

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

(24.5%) and

Georgians Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and Peoples of the Caucasus, Caucasian ethnic group native to present-day Georgia (country), Georgia and surrounding areas historically associated with the Ge ...

(23.4%). As a result of the War in Abkhazia the town's industries all but stopped and its population decreased greatly and was between 7,000 and 8,000 in 2004 according to some sources and only 4,800 according to others. At the time of the 2003 census, its population was 4,786. By the time of the 2011 census, it had increased to 5,013. Of these, 66.5% were Abkhaz, 17.4% Georgian, 9.7%

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

, 1.3% Ukrainian, 1.1%

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

and 0.4%

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

.2011 Census results
/ref>

Economy

Tkvarcheli's economy has historically been centered around coal mining. However, the town has faced economic decline since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. While coal mining continues to some extent, the industry is no longer as robust, and the local economy has struggled with high unemployment and limited infrastructure development. Efforts have been made to revive the local economy through investments in small-scale industries and tourism. The town's natural beauty and historical significance have attracted some interest from visitors, though political instability in the region remains a challenge for sustained development.

Gallery

File:Akarmara.jpg, View of the Akarmara ghost town near Tkvarcheli File:Akarmaabandoned.jpg, View of an abandoned factory in Akarmara File:Akarmaraghosttown.jpg, View of abandoned apartments in Akarmara

Notes

References

{{Administrative divisions of Abkhazia Populated places in Tkvarcheli District Sukhumi okrug