There is positive progress in negotiation process on cost of Russian  gas

ArmInfo.There is positive progress in the negotiation process on the cost of Russian gas. On December 18, Hrant Tadevosyan, Director General of Gazprom Armenia  CJSC, told reporters.

According to him, agreement has been reached on a number of issues,  negotiations are ongoing on the others. The Director General  emphasized that during the negotiations both forecasted volumes of  gas consumption in Armenia and investments in the gas transmission  network are discussed. The gas tariff, Tadevosyan noted, will largely  determine the volumes that will need to be spent in the system.  According to him, the tariff is still unknown, therefore, for 2020  investments are indicated in a smaller volume than for 2021-2024. The  total investment for five years is slightly less than $ 130 million,  but less investment is planned in the first year due to uncertainties  with the tariff. "Naturally, as long as we don't know what tariff we  will have, it's difficult for us to forecast how much money we will  have and what kind of work we will have enough for them," Tadevosyan  explained.

Earlier, RA Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan reported that there  would be no price hike for consumers until April 1, 2020. According  to him, negotiations with the Russian side on gas prices continue.   "In the winter months, the gas tariff will not increase. That is,  until April 1, the issue of raising the gas price will not be  discussed," Grigoryan said. Moreover, as the Deputy Prime Minister  pointed out, it must be understood that the gas tariff for the  domestic consumer is formed at least on the basis of three  components:  the gas price at the border, the volume of Gazprom  Armenia investments and current expenses.

Back in early November of this year Garegin Baghramyan, the head of  the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC), referring to  statements that the gas tariff for the end consumer will not increase  in the winter season in any case, explained that such "restrictions"  are due to purely procedural terms. That is, when the Russian  "Gazprom" decides on the gas tariff, "Gazprom Armenia" will apply for  a revision of the tariff for the domestic consumer, which the PSRC  will consider within 80 business days. Then the tariff will be  determined from the end of the specified 80 working days and will  enter into force after 30 days - in the spring of 2020.

To recall, on December 31, 2019, the contract with Gazprom on the  supply of Russian gas to Armenia at a price of $ 165 per 1,000 cubic  meters expires.

Meanwhile, according to ArmInfo analysts, the price of gas will  definitely increase, the only question is how much. They remind that  earlier Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan pointed out the need to apply  such a price that would not hurt the country's economy, thereby  becoming a hindrance to the implementation of the economic revolution  in the country. One of the constraining factors in this direction  could be the 400- kilovolt Iran-Armenia power transmission line,  which is  under construction, due to which it would be possible to  significantly increase the supply of Iranian gas in the amount of 1  cubic meter in exchange for the supply of 3 kWh of electricity from  Armenia. To recall, within the framework of this program, actually 1  kW / h of electricity is supplied to Armenia for free.