PRICE FOR GAS IN ARMENIA WILL GROW, DEPUTY HEAD OF GASPROM SAYS

MOSCOW, MARCH 17. ARMINFO. It will be difficult for Russia to keep up
the price for gas, which comes to Armenia. Deputy Chairman of the
Board of Gasprom ojsc Alexander Ryazanov said.

As Regnum agency reports with reference to Armenian TV channel Yerkir
Media, Ryazanov stressed it today on the border of Armenia the price
for gas is $56,000 per 1,000 cubic meter, then 1-1.5 years later it
will exceed $60. At the same time the deputy head of Gasprom mentioned
that today the gas comes to Armenia from Turkmenistan, as well as from
Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. “All these countries orientate to European
prices and follow the way of sharp increase in prices.”

In the number of urgent problems Alexander Ryazanov mentioned the
technical state of the transit capacities, in particular, of the
Georgian section of the transit gas main passing from Russia to
Armenia. According to him, the Georgian side has not practically
invested funds in modernization of the main, as the main is not of
strategic importance for the country so much as for Armenia.

Ryazanov said it will possible to modernize the main and provide more
reliable supply of gas to Armenia. The deputy head of Gasprom said the
company does not put a task to receive a surplus profit in Armenia, as
it realizes that at rather a high level of demand for gas the solvency
of the population is limited.