“Yes, today, ENA faces serious financial problems that are die to various issues. Firstly, they had taken short-term loans, which, in our language, were not good loans. There are problems related to their service. In addition, there is also our Commission’s fault. In 2012-2013 and 2013-14, the production of balance of our electricity when we were doing projections and including in the calculation of the tariffs, the balance was not maintained. The year of 2012 was a year of low precipitation, in addition the nuclear power plant did not work unplanned 88 days and we had to buy electricity produced by more expensive power plants. As a result, ENA suffered unplanned loss of 22 billion 600 million drams.
Today, the network has appeared to be not in good situation,” such confession was made by the Chairman of the Committee Robert Nazaryan at the National Assembly during the presentation of the 2015 Action Plan of the Public Services Regulatory Commission. This made independent MP Edmon Marukyan angry. He said, “Last year, they raised the price for electricity, and it was motivated as follows that there is a poor namagement at the ENA, as well as financial crisis. You said that they had taken bad loans and there are service-related problems. Energy Minister told me that they are elaborating a recovery plan. I know that a recovery plan is done when there is approximately a bankruptcy proceeding. In other words, the situation at the ENA is very bad, which is why there is a problem of energy security.
Now, I would like to understand that it was poorly managed for years, there were damages, losses, false investments, and it has passed by your Committee. Then you say, dear citizens, as there was a poor management, therefore, we need to raise the price for electricity and save the ENA, or else we would have an energy security problem. The Armenian taxpayers are asking, “Well, then why do we keep this Committee? Where was the Committee’s overseeing function? What was it busy with during the years of poor management, when taking bad loans that you have made the situation appear on this level?” and then you say, “Dear people, we need to raise the prices, if not, there would be cyclic power cutoffs, the years of 90s and so on.” Robert Nazaryan replied that it is a very sensitive question. According to him, as if it is said that the ENA is in a bad shape, yet this does not mean that we need to compensate this poor shape completely. He went on to explain that he has been working in the Committee for many years, and this is the first time that the plant was unplanned stopped for 88 days, and they could not predict it. “I am not a specialist and I cannot tell the reasons, but we know that it is an explosive structure. Yes, I think that our Committee should always be on the pulse to avoid raising such questions. Unfortunately, they are a little bit of force majeure.”
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
