www.aravot.am inquired of Armen Movsisyan, the Minister of Energy, today whether he agreed with the opinion voiced in the National Assembly that this government was incompetent, and the incompetence of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) was the reason why Russian gas sold to us was so expensive.
The minister replied: “It means that the governments of all states, except Russia, are incompetent, is that it? That’s the meaning of that statement. I don’t think that one can agree with that statement, because the cheapest gas in the region is sold to the Republic of Armenia. If the government had been incompetent, it wouldn’t have been the cheapest; it would have been more expensive.”
When journalists observed that we had continuously been ceding our infrastructure to the Russian Federation and asked how one should understand the fact that as a result of that, they sold us gas at the price it ought to be, he responded: “I wouldn’t say we have given it away.”
Commenting on Hrant Bagratyan’s statement that they didn’t name the final price, the minister said that they would present the methods and logic, according to which the calculations had been made. “We buy gas at a lower price than Georgia.”
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In response to an observation that according to the data made public by the Customs Service, the price for Iranian gas was $180, as it had been, he said that we didn’t trade with Iran, but exchanged. “This is a different matter. We don’t have that energy potential to import the necessary amount for the whole country by barter. Serious energy potential is needed to do that.”
He assured that Iranian gas was not cheaper than Russian gas.
News had circulated in the press from time to time that gas prices would increase, and it would be announced after the elections. Armen Movsisyan denied that it had anything to do with the elections. “We all knew that gas prices would increase. This is not the last time. Prices of energy resources never fall; they tend to rise. It has nothing to do with the elections; it is a process that started 3 years ago.”
And when reminded that the President of the Republic of Armenia had said that the talk of an increase in gas prices was a slander and a rumor, the minister said: “It hasn’t risen yet; what they talk about is a slander and a rumor. When prices rise, it will be clearer.”
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
