ARKA News Agency, Armenia
April 28 2006

HEAD OF WB YEREVAN OFFICE: SALE OF HRAZDAN-5 TO RUSSIA IS VERY
PROFITABLE FOR ARMENIA

YEREVAN, April 28. /ARKA – Novosti-Armenia/. The Hrazdan-5 (5th
power-unit of Hrazdan heat and power plant) sale transaction is very
profitable for Armenia, as the Head of the WB Yerevan Office Roger
Robinson told journalists in Yerevan today.
`The only thing I can say, reasoning from the information provided by
authorities, is that this transaction is very profitable for
Armenia’, Robinson stated.
In his words, in many countries of the world public services are not
always rendered by resident companies.
`There is nothing wrong in such system’, Robinson finds.
Besides that in his words, Russia is the main provider of primary
energy resources in Armenia.
`It’s nowadays reality’, Robinson stated. He emphasized that Armenia
receives from Russia atomic fuel and natural gas and the only own
source of energy are hydro-resources.
`Each of us, who speaks about energy-generation and energy-supply in
Armenia, must realize this reality’, Robinson finds.
At the same time he emphasized the importance of existence of
powerful regulating body in Armenia, which sets and controls the
sphere of service rendering.
He informed that next week the RA Government intends to conduct
public hearings on this issue.
`It would be right if the Government discusses with citizens its
activities of recent months. Their responsibility sphere includes
this, since they act on behalf of the people of Armenia’, he stated.
On April 6, `Gasprom’ ojsc and the RA Government signed an agreement
on strategic cooperation for 25 years. The document envisages
purchase of Hrazdan-5 by the `ArmRusgasprom’ cjsc from Armenia for
$248,8 mln and it also sets price for Russian gas for Armenia
amounting to $110 for 1 thsd cubic meters till January 1, 2009.
S.P.–0–