Study: most of electricity meters in Yerevan show inflated numbers

YEREVAN, February 24. /ARKA/. Citing the findings of a study conducted by a non-governmental organization called ‘Out of Our Pockets’ Armen Yepremyan, a member of its board, said about 80% of electricity meters  in the capital city Yerevan show inflated numbers and as a result the households pay more for electricity than they in fact used.

Speaking at a news conference on February 23 he said the problem is caused by night tariffs for electricity, when the time setup inside the meter is violated, and the consumers can not properly plan electricity usage hours.

From August 1, 2015 the day time electricity tariff for households (from 7.00 am to 11.00 pm) is 48.78 drams per one kWh, and the night tariff is 38.78 drams.

However, David Ghazinyan, a representative of the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) company,  claimed that the problem causes losses not only to consumers, but also to the company itself, ‘because if night rates start later they end later and therefore, it is impossible to say who wins in this situation and who loses.'

According to Ghazinyan, the new owner of the power distribution company is working now to eliminate  such problems.

"The Electric Networks of Armenia works exclusively for the benefit of consumers. Our staff immediately respond to every request, and to each violation. We work to eliminate the problem in two or three days. However, I do not agree that these problems are widespread. In February we have received 220 complaints, but only 8 of them were justified,' he said.

On June 17, 2015 Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) voted to raise electricity tariffs by 6.93 drams ($0.015 or 16.7%) per kilowatt-hour beginning on August 1. The decision gave rise to street protests in Yerevan and other cities in Armenia. On September 30 Tashir Group, owned by ethnic Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetyan, confirmed the acquisition of ENA from Russian energy holding Inter RAO. -0-