ArmInfo.The Armenian government will increase the amount of subsidies paid to compensate for losses from passenger transportation by South Caucasus Railway CJSC by 65.2 million drams, as stated in the justification for the draft government decision.
The legal basis for the subsidy payment is the concession agreement signed on February 13, 2008, between the Republic of Armenia, CJSC "South Caucasus Railway," and OJSC "Russian Railways." According to the agreement, the state partially compensates the concessionaire for annual losses from passenger transportation on agreed routes and volumes, following the submission of calculations verified by an independent auditor. The compensation rate from 2016 to 2038 is set at 30% of the corresponding losses.
At the end of 2025, the total subsidy amount payable in 2026 reached 312.2 million AMD, whereas the state budget had allocated 246.9 million AMD for this purpose. Consequently, a deficit of 65.22 million AMD was incurred.
Moreover, as emphasized in the document, increasing the subsidy amount will not require additional expenditures from the state budget. This is due to the fact that the subsidy is paid in an amount equivalent to the concession payment transferred by the company to the Armenian budget. The concession payment for 2025 also amounted to 312.2 million drams, and the company transferred it on June 4, 2026.
"In this regard, it is proposed to increase the subsidy by 65.22 million drams through the redistribution of budgetary allocations, which will allow the state to fulfill its obligations under the concession agreement," the justification states.
