Hail the most independent energy system

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Armen Movsisyan presents the energy system of Armenia as the most independent

  Yesterday hearings were held at the NA permanent committee on economic issues on the subject of “creating an NA temporary committee examining the activities of the gas providing system”. The suggestion of creating the temporary committee was made by the ARF faction that, however, was extremely dissatisfied with the hearings. Firstly, not the faction that made the proposal, but the committee, chose the list of participants, secondly the main reporter, the head of the RA public services regulating committee, could not satisfy the ARF MPs with his answers, and thirdly without too big efforts it was obvious that the ARF proposal of creating a temporary committee would be denied, and those were just hearings of “releasing gas”. The main reporter Robert Nazaryan in response to all questions only praised the committee headed by him, and as he put it, did not wanted to abuse his committee’s authority. The Dashnaks expressed their opinions later that in that case it would be right that the main reporter and the respondent was the cabinet. By the way, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Armen Movsisyan, who also attended the hearings, was also trying to give answers with certain interference. The ARF faction leader Vahan Hovhannisyan stressing the importance of creating the temporary committee said. “This is not an indictment, this is just a question, we as representatives of the society have the right to ask it, and believing, that the energy has such a big strategic importance for the RA, probably only the Ministry of Defense with its importance can compete with it.”

We asked Vardan Bostanjyan, the deputy head of the permanent committee on economic issues whether he was satisfied with the hearings held, whether he thought that there was a certain formal thing in those. In response Mr. Bostanjyan said, “In any case, there is a gas providing system that is run with monopoly rights by HayRusgazard”. This is a very complicated system and has many specifics. In any case I give importance to these hearings despite the fact that they were not quite such (fruitful – M. Y.) because notwithstanding the temporary committee will or will not be created, there is a set of questions here that will improve the committee’s fruitfulness, it cannot but not, because there are many questions asked that however subjective they might be, put people aware of and responsible for the job in certain limits. The answers cannot be fully satisfying, because the man who asks the questions also knows the limits and framework of that question, and naturally, all the respondents are primarily inclined to construct their answers within the framework of their security.” The ARF representative Armen Rustamyan told “Aravot” that the hearings gave an opportunity to raise questions, “But we rather thought that the people who expressed their discontent and defend the rights of the consumers, they are who gave the main alarm, this is not just another raised question, and the public sector is less represented. Our questions are plain, but they were suspended. Firstly the main reporter should have been the cabinet, but not contiguously answering the questions.”

In Armen Rustamyan’s opinion, the creation of the temporary committee can take place only as a result of a political decision. RFE journalist asked the representative of our ministry cabinet Armen Movsisyan, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, that there is an opinion that Armenia had once given all of its energy resources to Russia and concerning the gas arrangements (meaning the RF president’s promise to raise the gas price – M. Y.) Russia as a result does not lose much. The minister answering this question said. “Our energy system is one of the most independent, if you carefully examine our laws, our opportunities, you will see that it is one of the most independent systems, at least it is more independent than those of other states of the region.”