President Held a Consultation with the Leadership of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources

President Serzh Sargsyan today visited the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. The President of Armenia toured a number of structural units of the Ministry’s staff, including Atomic Energy Department, Investment Projects and Capital Expenditures Department, Development Department and External Relations Department, inquired about the Ministry’s current works and programs, familiarized with the Ministry’s working conditions, talked to employees about their functions and the works being implemented in the framework of those functions, as well as about current problems.

Following the tour, the President held a consultation with the leadership of the Ministry. The Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, the Deputy Ministers, the Head of Staff presented the works carried out in the sphere of energy and natural resources, the forthcoming programs, the existing problems and the measures taken to deal with those problems. Minister Armen Movsisyan introduced the main indicators of the 2011-2013 works implemented in the sphere of Armenia’s energy and natural resources, as well as the development strategy.

The Deputy Minister Iosif Isayan reported on the indicators of the paid taxes and the goods produced in the spheres of electricity, natural gas and mineral industry. He also presented the implementation process of the works in the energy sphere envisioned by the action plan on Armenia’s joining of the Customs Union and the common economic area of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, as well as the results of the works being realized at Armenian-Chinese Shansi-Nairit joint enterprise.

Another Deputy Minister Areg Galstyan presented to the President of Armenia the works being carried out in the sphere of atomic energy to ensure the security of the second energy block of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant and to increase its operating period, the construction project of building a new energy block in Armenia, the restored energy and energy saving programs, the issues of regional integration and international cooperation, as well as the work driven to adopt international treaties, legislative and sub-legislative legal acts.

The Deputy Minister Ara Simonyan reported on the process and results of the investments projects being realized in the power grid sphere.

The other Deputy Minister Levon Shahverdyan introduced the current works concerning the operation, security, reliability and the regime optimization in the spheres of electricity, thermal energy and gas supply.

The Ministry’s Head of Staff Karen Ghahramanyan presented to the President the main financial and non-financial indicators of 2011-2033, the results of the works carried out by the Ministry’s organizational and special units.

Serzh Sargsyan gave questions on separate issues, presented his observations and remarks, gave instructions to the staff in charge, as well as talked about the Ministry’s top-priority directions and forthcoming works. The President stressed the importance of continual and consistent efforts at raising work efficiency. “Every best decision is just the half of the work. Of course, launching a new block is a great decision, but having a good decision is the half of the work. We should be able to give accurate and in due accounts in order for people to understand the importance of that decision. Not doing this means encountering difficulties. I will bring a concrete example: look, both I and our citizens are concerned with the gas price, don’t they? And today, thank God, at least nobody talks about the gas price which is fixed in the treaty signed with Gazprom. Why don’t they talk? Because it is the lowest price at which Russia gives to a country, and secondly, we talked about it several times, people understood and they also understood that the treaty fixed the price for a five year and it is tied to the internal prices in Russia which will either not increase or increase up to five percent annually at maximum. Of course, it is not desirable, but is not as it was previously. Moreover, this is known to not only our citizens, but also to foreign businessmen who taking account the forecast and the price, are already thinking of installing their power-consuming production in Armenia. We already have such examples. They even consider freely exporting their production to the Customs Union and other countries. This is, of course, very good. But there is another issue. People can’t understand why gas reaching their apartments from the border becomes more expensive? And this is the thing we should talk much about. We should talk because this is our work and this is the Ministry’s work as well. We should explain people where those amounts come from. What kinds of additions bring to that? We should explain people that if we do not take those measures, do not change pipes, do not install modern equipment etc., we might face great problems in the future. Every one of us is obliged to do that. I think that every one sitting here knows about it much better than me and knows just as well how much gas and electrical energy, many times exceeding the average amount consumed during ordinary days, we consume on December 30, 31 and 1. However, in order to be able to use it constantly we should make investments. We can’t use 30 or 40-year-old pipes putting them under pressure. I am glad that a parliamentary commission has been established on this issue. It is an excellent opportunity to investigate these issues once more. We do not have anything to hide. Let them investigate and introduce to the public,” said President Serzh Sargsyan.

At the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the President answered the questions of the participants of the consultation related to the activities sphere and social problems of the Ministry, as well as to the foreign and internal policy of Armenia.

At the end of the consultation, a number of employees of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources were awarded encouragements for their conscientious and effective work: Head of Financial-Economic Department Boris Gyulumyan, Head of Development Department Hrach Tsughunyan, Head of Secretariat Anahit Margaryan, Head of Personnel Management Division Narine Sargsyan and Head of International Economic Cooperation Division of External Relations Department Victoria Keshishyan were awarded Letters of Commendation.