Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
Aug 12 2008

Armenia faces fuel shortage due to South Ossetia crisis

Yerevan, 12 August: Many petrol stations in Yerevan have stopped
selling petrol due to lack of fuel.

Some petrol stations in Yerevan were closed today, and many petrol
stations in Yerevan sold no more than 10 litres of petrol to each
customer in the evening of 11 August.

The marketing director of the Flash [fuel imports and sales company],
Mushegh Yelchyan, said in an interview with Mediamax news agency, that
trains with petrol bound for Armenia had been delayed for a long time
on Georgia’s territory, as the Georgian side was afraid that the
explosive freight could be bombed.

He said that the fuel currently arrived in Armenia with great
difficulties, and deficit had emerged as a result.

"We have managed to import 500 t of petrol today, and another 3,000 t
remain in Georgia at present, and its delivery is being delayed for
the time being," Yelchyan said.

Commenting on the reasons for the sale of restricted quantities of
fuel by petrol stations, Yelchyan told Mediamax that "in this way
importers try to avoid reselling at overcharged prices". He said that
the petrol stations of the Flash company were currently filling tanks
of vehicles in full, but did not sell petrol in cans.

Yelchyan said that the company had sold 2.5 times more petrol than
usual yesterday [11 August]. At the same time he said that no increase
in the petrol price was expected in Armenia. "On the contrary, after
the situation is settled a decrease in the petrol prices is possible
due to the decrease in oil prices in global markets," Yelchyan said.

The press service of another petrol importer into Armenia, the Mika
corporation, also said that freights with fuel have been delayed for a
long time in Georgia.

About half of all cars in Armenia use natural gas as fuel. In
particular, almost all taxies and vans, as well as many private cars
work on natural gas. The press service of the ArmRosGazprom company
said that the volumes of gas deliveries to the gas filling stations
have not been reduced.