ArmInfo. An agreement was signed on the establishment of a free economic zone (FEZ) in the Armenian city of Hrazdan. The document was signed by the Acting Tigran Khachatryan, Minister of Economic Development and Investments of the Republic of Armenia; and Zarmine Zeytuntsyan, Director General of ECOS CJSC, organizing the Free Economic Zone.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Economic Development and Investments of the Republic of Armenia, the document establishes the obligations of the organizer of the FEZ and the relationship with the state. The activity of the free economic zone in Hrazdan is aimed at the development of high technology in the country. A specific ecosystem is created on the basis of the zone, where a number of infrastructure services will operate - from educational and communication projects, laboratory research to electronic platforms for new projects being formed in order to attract investments. Within the framework of the FEZ, an industrial mining center will be created on the basis of the Hrazdan TPP, which will become part of the envisaged technological clusters for innovative startups. In addition, the FEZ will become the center of database preservation.
To recall, the decision on the establishment of the FEZ was taken at the August 30 meeting of the RA Government. Presenting the draft decision then, the former Minister of Economic Development and Investments of the Republic of Armenia Artsvik Minasyan informed that ECOS undertakes to involve about 200 beneficiaries in the work of the zone until 2043. It is envisaged that CJSC EKOS itself will create 23 jobs and the beneficiaries will create 300. At the same time, the company will invest $ 4 million in the zone until 2021, and the beneficiaries will invest $ 15 million. At the same time, the volume of investments will further increase by another $ 30 million will consist of two components - production and office. Production areas of 4.3 hectares will be located at the Hrazdan TPP, and office premises - in Yerevan. "There will be a mining center in Hrazdan, that is, activities based on blockchain technologies, extensive use of databases and technologies," said Minasyan, adding that this will be the 4th free economic zone in Armenia. According to him, the project aims to attract foreign direct investment, increase the country's investment attractiveness, create new jobs. The term of the FEZ is 25 years.