The updated feasibility study of construction project of electricity transmission line Armenia- Georgia will be ready by the end of the year - the Ministry of Energy

ArmInfo. By the end of this year, work will be completed on the preparation of an updated version of the feasibility study for the construction of the fourth power transmission line Armenia-Georgia. On this eve, RA Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources Arthur Grigoryan stated at a press conference in Yerevan.

According to him, the main task of this step is to reduce the price of the project in order to mitigate the debt burden on the Republic of Armenia. Artur Grigoryan recalled that earlier Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan ordered to study the possibilities for reducing the amount of investments for this project, so as not to increase the national debt of the country. In this context, the minister agreed that the timing of the commissioning of the Armenia-Georgia power line will be adjusted. "It is unlikely that we will be able to implement the project by the end of 2019," Arthur Grigoryan stated.

He also added that only 15% of the construction of the Iran-Armenia electricity transmission line has been completed. The project participants agreed to accelerate the implementation of these programs and determine their conditions. With the completion of the construction of two new transmission lines, there will be an opportunity to establish electricity supplies from Iran to Russia via

Armenia, which is very important for the country. "Deliveries of electricity are a very important process, in order to ensure that Armenia becomes a transit country and join the regional energy system, it is necessary to implement the relevant programs, in particular, related to the construction of the Iran-Armenia and Georgia-Armenia power transmission lines," the minister said.

Earlier, 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 a March 15 meeting. The technical task, the press service of the Ministry of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia, 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 modernize the electric substation with voltage of 220 kV, 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 kV. 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 stage of the project should be completed no later than the third Iran- Armenia power line 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 under construction. The preliminary cost of the construction program for the electricity transmission line Armenia-Georgia, according to the FICHTNER company, will be 326.9 million euros, and the Iran-Armenia power line - $ 107 million. In order to finance the construction of the Armenia- Georgia power transmission line, three loan agreements were signed in 2014-2015. In particular, 168 million euros were allocated by the German bank KfW as a loan, the European Investment Bank provided another 10 million euros. It is expected to receive another 10 million euros in the form of a grant from the European Commission.