Monday, May 7 2018 13:18

ArmInfo. There are all  prerequisites for turning Armenia into an energy hub. Acting Deputy  Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources Hayk  Harutyunyan wrote on his Facebook page on May 7, summing up the  results of the work done.

According to the Acting Deputy Minister, the volume of export of  Armenian electricity increased by 17% in 2017, and in the first  quarter of this year, compared to the same period in 2016, the volume  of foreign supplies amounted to a record 60%. "The pace of  electricity export growth is encouraging, thanks to intensive work  with neighboring countries," Hayk Harutyunyan said. He added that the  construction of the third high-voltage power transmission line  Iran-Armenia is currently underway.

On this project, new agreements favorable for the Armenian side were  reached. There are also views on both construction and sources of  financing for the fourth power transmission line Armenia-Georgia.  Earlier, ArmInfo reported that the technical commission on increasing  the reliability of operation and efficiency of the electric power  system of Armenia approved the terms of reference for the  construction of a new power transmission line Armenia-Georgia at  March 15 meeting. The technical task, the press service of the  Ministry of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources of the  Republic of Armenia reported, was developed by the German bank KfW,  which is financing the program, and Fichtner, which won the tender to  identify the project consultant. According to the terms of reference,  the project is divided into several stages. At the first stage, it  was planned to upgrade the electric substation with a voltage of 220  kW, build a new substation with a voltage of 400 kV, and also build a  new overhead transmission line to the Georgian border. At the second  stage it was planned to build an electrical substation with a voltage  of 500 kW.

However, in order to increase the effectiveness of the program, it is  now planned to use existing electric substations, whose modernization  is less expensive than the construction of new ones. At the same  time, already in the existing areas where the electric substation was  planned to be built, a solar power station will be built, the  construction costs of which will be reduced through the use of  existing infrastructures. As a result, the cost of the entire  construction program for the electricity transmission line  Armenia-Georgia will be reduced by 30%. Moreover, the construction of  a solar power plant will save another 20% of the funds.  It was noted  at the commission meeting that the first project should be completed  no later than the third Iran-Armenia power line which is currently  under construction. In general, the program for the construction of  the Iran-Armenia power line should be completed in parallel with the  second power unit of the Yerevan Thermal Power Plant.

Earlier it was also reported that the consultant of the construction  project of the electricity transmission line Armenia-Georgia - the  company Fichtner GmbH & Co. KG - prepared a tender package for the  selection of the general contractor. The project itself was planned  to be implemented in three stages. Sources of funding for the first  two phases were known. Within the first two stages, it is planned to  build the power transmission line itself with a voltage of 400  kilovolts and two DC substations in Ddmashen and Ayrum, which would  allow starting work with the electric power system of Georgia in  asynchronous mode.

Within the framework of the project it is planned to unite the  electric power systems of Armenia and Georgia, which will promote the  development of mutually beneficial regional cooperation within the  framework of the created energy corridor Iran-Armenia-Georgia-Russia.  The preliminary cost of the program, according to the company  FICHTNER is 326.9 million EUR, 10% of which is part of the  contribution of Georgia. The first two phases of the program were  estimated at 188.2 million EUR. To this end, in 2014-2015, three loan  agreements were signed. In particular, 168 million EUR were allocated  by the German bank KfW as a loan, another ? 10 million loan was  granted by the European Investment Bank. It was expected to receive  another 10 million in the form of a grant from the European  Commission. The first two phases of the program were to be  implemented in parallel. The work was planned to be completed by the  end of 2019. Also by the end of 2019 it is planned to complete the  construction of the Iran-Armenia electricity transmission line at a  cost of $ 107 million, to establish the energy corridor  "North-South".