ArmInfo. Workers of Alaverdi Copper smelter at worst will be able to continue working on field "Teghut".
This was announced on November 27 at the election rally in Alaverdi by the acting president. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
He elaborated on the problem of the enterprise and the Teghout field. Nikol Pashinyan reminded that the development of the field began with the attraction of a loan from VTB Bank of $ 380 million. The field was operational, but in January-February of this year. it turned out that there was a hole in the tailings of the field and there was a need to restore it. In order to solve the arisen problem, the company attempted to attract a new loan, and since it did not work during this period of time, it was unable to service the loan of VTB Bank. During the same period of time, it was unable to attract new credit resources in the amount of about $ 10 million. The company was not able to attract loans from other sources either, since both Teghut and the Alaverdi copper smelter were incorporated in VTB Bank. The company undertook to attract a new loan from VTB Bank, but the bank, seeing the risks associated with the repayment of funds, refused to receive new financial injections. In this situation, the government invited both parties, pointing out the importance of solving the problem and calling upon the parties to resolve the issue through negotiations. As a result, the Teghout field came under the control of VTB Bank. "We have set a condition for VTB Bank to attract a new operator that uses the field," Nikol Pashinyan stressed.
The main cause of environmental problems, that is, violations of permissible standards for emissions of sulfur dioxide by the enterprise, as a result of which the company was fined and ordered to reduce emissions by 90% until December 25 of the current year. In addition, Vallex announced financial problems with VTB Bank. It was reported that in order to build a mining complex in Teghout, VTB Bank, in exchange for the loans provided, demanded that the assets and shares of ACP be pledged to provide a loan, along with other guarantees.
However, the legal processes related to the implementation of the Bank's pledge of rights to property have not yet been implemented. Meanwhile, in an interview with the TV channel "Angle Plus Three" affiliated with "Vallex", the director of the plant in Alaverdi Lusine Mejloumian called on the company's employees to be vigilant, saying that Teghut CJSC had already passed into the ownership of VTB Bank and if, with the help of the government, it is not possible to resolve the issue with the copper smelter, the plant also expects the same fate. As the director pointed out, Vallex unfoundedly trusted the bank. In addition, Lusine Mejlumyan once again stated that it is practically impossible to follow the requirements of environmentalists. "We have never concealed that we exceed the permissible emission threshold, since there is no other opportunity to work," she said, noting that in recent years the company did not make serious investments, and those that were made were only to keep production power in operation. Recall that the company is axial for the region and in the event of its closure, about 630 people will remain without work and livelihood. Nevertheless, as environmentalists say, the work of the plant in its current form is fraught with environmental consequences and problems for the health of the inhabitants of the region.
Note that Vallex Group (Vallex Group) was established in 1998 and unites 20 subsidiary and affiliated companies. Among them, Teghut CJSC, founded in May 2006, 100% of the shares of CJSC belong to Teghut Investments Limited of Cyprus, 100% of which voting shares in turn belong to Armenian Kopr Program CJSC, which is fully owned by Valery Mejlumyan, and also CJSC Base Metals, which operates a copper-gold deposit in the village of Drmbon, Martakert region, NKR, Armenian Copper Program CJSC (ACP), which operates the Alaverdi Copper Smelter.