Wednesday, May 8 2019 14:52

ArmInfo.The future of the Armenian energy sector is not gas, but renewable energy sources. RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan adheres to this point of view.

Answering the question about the prospects for gasification of the  Meghri region at a press conference in Yerevan on May 8, the head of  government stressed the importance of developing alternative energy.  The prime minister recalled that over the past few years, millions of  dollars have been sent to the gasification of Armenian settlements,  and the result is minimal. The high cost of gas makes, for example,  villagers who receive gas use it only for making coffee or lunch. As  a result, as the head of government noted, the costs are not  justified, and the burden falls on all citizens. "We say that the  country should be technologically developed, and in this context, the  future is not for gas, but for renewable energy sources," the premier  said.

Earlier, ArmInfo reported that, as of today, the investment portfolio  of energy conservation and renewable energy development programs  implemented in Armenia is about 40 million euros. In the past two  years, it has been possible to attract serious financial resources,  the main suppliers of which are the World Bank, as well as KfW Bank  and European structures. The German KfW bank will provide 20 million  euros for the implementation of the program. An agreement was signed  with the European Union, which also agreed to take part in the  project. In the medium term, a number of new production capacities  will be created in the energy sector using the latest and cleanest  ("green") technologies, including solar energy, which will  significantly reduce the load on production capacities in the energy  sector, reducing dependence on imported hydrocarbon fuel. The  expected investment under the Renewable Energy Program is $ 117  million, of which $ 8.6 million is provided in the form of a grant,  and the rest in the form of soft loans. In addition, 129 million  drams will be allocated for the implementation of projects in the  field of solar energy, which will be provided to private companies in  the form of cheap loans. Of this amount, 7.5 million drams will make  grants to create conditions for the development of programs in this  area. In accordance with the Energy Development Strategy of Armenia  until 2036, it is planned to build wind power plants with a total  installed capacity of 200 megawatts. Another 30-40 megawatts will be  the amount of electricity from solar power plants. Small hydropower  plants have already reached a power level of 100 megawatts, another  50 megawatts will be created through small hydropower plants under  construction.