ArmInfo. Work on the construction of a solid waste landfill in Yerevan will begin in 2021 and will last for two years.
At the meeting on August 13, the Armenian government approved the signing of a modified version of the agreement with institutional investors - the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank. As noted in the reference - justification of the draft decision, on December 1, 2017, an agreement was signed on the construction of the landfill on solid waste disposal and conservation of the current landfill in the Nubarashen district. However, the project turned out to be difficult given the fact that there were no designed and built landfills in Yerevan that would meet European standards. With the participation of the EBRD, work was carried out to develop the concept of a single tender package. The developed version did not meet the required standards, as a result of which the agreement was canceled, which further complicated the process of developing the tender package. Subsequently, the final version of the package with numerous amendments and additions was sent to the EBRD and the EIB for approval, after which the document was approved by the Armenian government. This whole procedure took a year. The project itself is complex, considering that it involves the involvement of a company that will become the designer, builder and operator of the landfill. For this reason, the deadlines for accepting applications for participation in the tender were postponed several times. And only at the end of October 2019 the final agreement was signed. Now it is planned to start accepting applications from November 2020.
To recall, on December 1, 2017, at the RA Ministry of Finance between the Republic of Armenia and the European Investment Bank (EIB) within the framework of the Yerevan Solid Waste program, an Agreement was signed on the provision of a grant in the amount of 2 million euros from the funds of the Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership (E5P) . The program will contribute to the improvement of the municipal solid waste management system in Yerevan through three components. The first component is the construction of the first two zones of a new sanitary landfill and ancillary infrastructure. The new landfill, which will be located near the landfill in Nubarashen and 12 km from the center of Yerevan, will reduce the adverse impact of the existing landfill on the environment, public health and climate. The second component of the program covers the closure of the existing landfill and the remediation of the new landfill. The third component of the program will help prepare and implement systems and facilities that will increase recycling by extending the life of the new landfill. It is assumed that the grant funds under the Agreement will be used to finance the second component of the program. The program is financed as follows: a loan of 8 million euros from the European Investment Bank (EIB); a loan of 8 million euros from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD); a grant of 8 million euros from the European Union through the Neighborhood Investment Fund; the grant in the amount of 2 million euros will be provided by the E5P Foundation.
