ArmInfo.The "gas" relations between Armenia and Russia should be ended and, accordingly, it is necessary to clearly separate the political component from the economic component. Economist Vahagn Khachatryan expressed a similar opinion during the video bridge organized by the Hodvac3 club.
"We are well aware that no one could have foreseen the situation that Gazprom is facing. Today, it is much more profitable for companies to sell gas on the domestic market than on external ones. As for Armenia, if the expected increase in domestic tariffs does happen, annually it will cost the country $ 30 million. The fact that Armenia's transportation costs are 15-20% higher than other countries should also be taken into account," he noted.
According to the estimates of the economist, subscribers who consume up to 10 thousand cubic meters of gas annually will not even fee the decrease in tariffs by 4 drams per cubic meter promised by Gazprom Armenia. The same can not be said about the socially disadvantaged segments of the population and business, for which the company intends to increase the price of gas by 35 drams.
In the political sense, such an increase in domestic tariffs, according to the economist, will be a blow to the back of the Armenian government. In an economic sense, given Gazprom's interest in continuously increasing gas sales, this process will lead to almost no results. The economic entities and the population of Armenia, according to his forecasts, will simply not be able to increase the level of consumption.
"At the same time, the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) has so far failed to explain to all of us the pricing methodology of even current gas tariffs, not to mention the new application by Gazprom Armenia. The basis of the price increase is not clear: whether this is the linking of the cost of gas to the cost of oil or to the cost of gas in the Orenburg region of the Russian Federation. In any case, Armenia as a state has levers of influence on the determination of tariffs by Gazprom, and of course, these levers must be used, "summed up economist. Last week, Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan sent a letter to Gazprom Chairman Alexey Miller with a proposal to begin negotiations to reduce gas prices due to the negative impact of coronavirus on the country's socio-economic development. At the same time, Yerevan offers Moscow the opportunity to pay in national currency, that is, in rubles. Armenia buys gas from Russia at $ 165 per 1,000 cubic meters, while Armenian consumers pay Gazprom Armenia $ 290 per 1,000 cubic meters.
The very next day, Gazprom Armenia CJSC published a release about plans to apply to the Public Services Regulatory Commission with a proposal starting July 1 to increase the tariff for subscribers who consume up to 600 cubic meters of gas per year who are eligible for family or social benefits, from 100 to 135.9 thousand drams. It is proposed to lower the price for subscribers using up to 10 thousand cubic meters of gas annually from 139 to 135.9 thousand drams.
Meanwhile, at a press conference today, Gigoryan explained that he had not yet received a response from Gazprom. He also noted that it is beneficial for Armenia and other EAEU countries to buy gas in Russian rubles from Russia and this issue is on the agenda of the Council of Ministers of the EAEU member countries.
