Rumors are circulating that the management of the state-owned Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine’s share will be given to the Armenian State Interest Fund, ANIF. Does that information correspond to reality? “It’s right for me not to answer that question. I think the government has the opportunity to make a decision, and I am sure we will all know about it in the near future,” Davit Papazyan answered journalists’ questions during the December 3 online press conference organized by the Club of Economic Journalists.
To the clarifying question of if ANIF is ready to take over the management of the state share or if there is such an offer, Davit Papazyan answered that ANIF does not manage anything except the capital. “ANIF can be a “shareholder” of some shares, if an opinion is formed and an order is formed to transfer the ownership of both ZCMC and other shares to ANIF, it, of course, being one of our processes, I do not think that we would have a different opinion than to obey that order.”
According to Davit Papazyan, today there are several challenges in ZCMC, one of which is related to the environment, which can be solved by involving qualified specialists. The second challenge, according to him, is related to a fairer distribution of goods. He said that maybe the tax burden of the factory will be higher, and it will not be the second or third, but the first large taxpayer, with a big difference with the first and second. The Russian Industrial Company JSC belonging to GeoProMining Armenia bought 60% of the plant’s shares, 25 of which were donated to the Armenian government. Shares donated to the government make up 15% of ZCMC’s total equity.
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The owner of the Industrial Company is a wealthy Russian Roman Trotsenko. According to Davit Papazyan, the government accepted Mr. Roman Trotsenko’s proposal on two new programs. One of them is the construction of a copper smelter, the other is about a nuclear power plant.
Lusine BUDAGHYAN
