ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT STANDS READY TO BOOST MANUFACTURING CAPACITIES: PREMIER

ARKA
May 13, 2009

YEREVAN, May 13. /ARKA/. Armenia’s government stands ready to expand
local manufacturing capacities, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said
Tuesday during the opening ceremony of Armenian-Italian manufacturer
of building materials Litocol AM KO.

"The opening of the plant testifies to the fact that Armenia is
capable of expanding business and set up new companies amid the
crisis," Sargsyan was quoted saying.

He urged others to follow the example of the Armenian-Italian venture.

"If the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia take the
initiative of opening new enterprises every month, this will be a
strong protection against the crisis," the prime minister said.

In his turn, Chairman of the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen
of Armenia (UMBA) Arsen Ghazaryan stressed that in contrast to other
European states that prefer closing down enterprises amid the global
tailspin, Armenia opened a new company.

"This will lead to economic recovery and sustainable development of
the local construction market with the help of domestic companies
and foreign partners," Ghazaryan said.

The Armenian-Italian glue and tile cement manufacturer Litocom AM
KO was established in 2007. Investments in the plant’s construction
amounted to $10mln.

The Italian Litocol S.p.A. and Armenia’s IMEX Group hold 40% of th e
company’s shares each, with an Armenian resident holding 20% of the
plant’s shares.

The company annually outputs up to 32,000 tons of tile cement and
26,000 tons of gesso.