Expanded Summary 

Natural gas holds a fundamental and strategic significance for Georgias national energy security, sustainable economic growth, and external geopolitical positioning. Situated favorably between the resource-rich Caspian Basin and the expanding European energy markets, Georgias unique geographic location transforms the country into a pivotal regional energy transit hub. The operation of large-scale international infrastructure projects, such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum (South Caucasus) Pipeline and the Southern Gas Corridor, substantially elevates Georgias geopolitical weight and influence within the broader Eurasian energy architecture. However, due to limited domestic fossil resource endowments, the countrys profound and nearly absolute reliance on imported natural gas poses a severe long-term challenge to national resilience, creating substantial structural vulnerabilities against external supply disruptions.

This study comprehensively examines the theoretical framework underlying the concept of energy security, evaluates the contemporary structure of global natural gas markets, and investigates the role of this resource within international energy politics. Particular emphasis is placed on the extensive European energy crisis induced by the post-Russia-Ukraine war landscape, analyzing its transformative impact on the security of global natural gas supply chains. Furthermore, the research identifies and systematically assesses the primary risk factors threatening Georgias energy sector, including a critical dependence on external supply monopolies, ongoing regional geopolitical tensions, domestic infrastructural deficits, international price volatility, and the critical insufficiency or absence of underground natural gas storage facilities.

The study concludes by emphasizing that despite ongoing efforts toward energy diversification and renewable energy integration, natural gas will remain critically indispensable for Georgias economic stability, energy security, and national strategic interests over the medium-to-long term. Ultimately, this research provides valuable policy recommendations aimed at refining demand forecasting methodologies and constructing robust risk-mitigation frameworks, thereby facilitating evidence-based energy policy formulations capable of safeguarding national strategic interests within developing economies.

Keywords: Energy Security, Natural Gas Transit, Geopolitics, Southern Gas Corridor, Import Dependence.