Electricity price rise in Armenia justified - premier
“Our society believes that the price rise is caused by abuse or, in lay terms, by plunder. But I would bindingly say irrespective of what misuse was found in the company (Electric Networks of Armenia), no single dram of this was incorporated in the tariff calculation,” the premier said at Thursday’s government meeting.
Since 2007 Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission declined to incorporate costs worth a total of about 22 billion drams in its tariff calculations, Abrahamyan said. The company’s luxury costs were left out.
It is the company itself, not consumers, who suffered from the poor management, according to the premier.
There are three main objective factors that have influenced the tariff increase – dry year affecting hydro power plants, the 88-day standstill at the nuke stations and 20% devaluation of the national currency over the last three years.
Without the increase the Electric Networks of Armenia would fail to pay to power plants taking the country back to the rolling blackouts of the past, the premier said.
According to June 17 decision of Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission the electricity price for consumers will go up by about 1.5 cents or 16.7% to about 10 cents per kilowatt-hour, as compared to 40.8% increase asked for in the company’s bid warning that otherwise ENA will not be able to ensure the reliability of supply and investments levels.
Since June 19 ‘No To Plunder’ campaign participants have been holding demonstrations and sit-in in Yerevan against the rising electricity prices. Early morning on June 23, the police used water cannons to disperse peaceful demonstrators in Baghramyan Avenue that left 25 people injured. Baghramyan Avenue remains blocked.
Demonstrators demand to cancel Public Services Regulatory Commission’s decision to increase electricity tariffs by about 16.7% effective from August 1. –0--