ArmInfo. In 2016 processing companies purchased grapes at the total cost of about AMD 21,2 bln. About AMD 2,2, bln amount is still unpaid, IgnatiArakelyan, the Minister of Agriculture stated on February 2, after the Government meeting. " At the present stage stage no one of companies has broken its liabilities due to payouts. Everything is going according to the schedule," he stated.
According to Arakelyan, the Ministry develops additional financial tools to rule out any payment delays. What is to 2015 purchases, according to the Minister, as of February 3 all the purchasing entities have fully implemented their liabilities in respect to farmers, except the Company of Vinar. According to him, by today the issue of Vinar accounts receivable is still unsolved. The Agriculture Ministry in cooperation with other companies did its best and bought some wine spirit from Vinar, to give an option to pay the certain part of the debt. But there are some more debts left. "And, despite Vinar managers state they have more alcohol, according to our information they don't," Arakelyan mentioned.
It was reported earlier, that Agriculture Ministry applied to the prosecutor General Office claiming to recover the violated rights of the farmers in respect to debts unpaid by processing companies. "Farmers do complain permanently, but there is nothing done to make the companies implement their liabilities. This step will become a precedent to rule out such incidents in the future," Robert Makaryan, the Deputy Agriculture Minister stated at a press conference in Yerevan on December 21, 2016. As of January 19, 2017 Vinar LLC still had AMD 84 mln. debt unpaid to farmers.
