Friday, December 15 2017 09:40

ArmInfo. At Lydian Armenia,  health and safety culture is of outmost importance. With the start of  construction works at Amulsar the Company  initiated a renovation and  refurbishment of the hospital in Vayk, one of the nearby towns of  Amulsar. This hospital has been identified as the most strategic  medical facility to serve the needs of the project in case of  emergency situations.   

There are two well equipped medical aid facilities at Amulsar  construction site which are capable of providing primary medical care  but best international practice in health and safety is to identify a  medical facility close to the mine site, for trauma care in emergency  situations. With this in mind, Lydian Armenia has invested over  100,000 USD into the renovation and equipping of the surgical theatre  including the installation of an elevator necessary for delivering  patients in critical condition to surgery.  On December 13th, the  opening ceremony of the renovated hospital took place in  Vayk.   Management of Lydian Armenia, regional authorities of the town of  Vayk and the the head of Vayots Dzor Region participated at the  event.  Apart from the medical equipment and renovation of the  facilities, Lydian Armenia has also invested in training of the local  medical professionals. The hospital staff will undergo several  medical training courses. This includes training a neurologist,  surgeon-orthopedist, laporoscopy surgeon, laboratory specialist.  These will be 2,5 to 7 month long training courses in Yerevan,   financed by Lydian  and aimed at improving the local medical   service.  Lydian Armenia Managing Director Hayk Aloyan emphasized  the importance of this investment:  "Lydian Armenia especially values  investments that serve both the needs of Amulsar project and that  of  the communities. We expect lasting cooperation with the hospital of  Vayk. Already today this renovated hospital and the refurbished  surgical block will serve the needs of the Amulsar project in case of  emergency and will offer better medical services to the residents of  the Amusar communities".  Head of Medical Services of Lydian Armenia,  Dr. Vigen Tatintsyan spoke about the strict rules on health and  safety at Amulsar project. "We aim at reducing all risks of injuries  and work-related emergency situations at site. Since the start of  construction we haven't had any life-threatening injuries at Amulsar.  Additionally, a responsible company needs to be prepared for all kind  of situations and the refurbishment of Vayk medical center was aimed  at making sure we are prepared for these risks.

We are also pleased that the staff of the hospital will undergo training with the support of Lydian, and will ensure better medical services for the community", Doctor Tatintsyan says.  The Head of Vayots Dzor Region  Mr. Harutyun Sargsyan thanked Lydian Armenia for its investment in  the hospital that will serve the whole region of Vayots Dzor.  Answering the questions of the journlaists he also emphasized the  importance of the jobs and economic opportunities created by the  Amulsar project in the Region.

Lydian Armenia is a subsidiary of the British Lydian International,  whose shareholders are also large international institutional  investors from the United States, Great Britain, a number of European  countries, including IFC and EBRD. The Amulsar project is the largest  industrial project in Armenia for the development of the Amulsar gold  deposit at a total cost of $ 370 million. 

In August 2016, a project for the construction and development of the field was launched. Preliminary work has been carried out since 2006.  The life of the Amulsar deposit will be 10 years and 4 months, an annual average of 200,000 ounces of gold (about 10 million tons of ore) is planned. The company's shares are quoted on the Toronto Stock Exchange.  Amulsar  deposit is the second largest in Armenia.