ArmInfo. The development of the Amulsar mine will increase Armenia's GDP by 1%. On February 22, Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan stated after the signing ceremony of the tripartite memorandum of understanding between the Armenian government, Eurasian Development Bank(EDB), and "Lydian Armenia" company, which marked the resumption of the Amulsar mine exploitation project.
As the Minister said, as part of the memorandum, $150 million will be invested, of which $100 million will be EDB loans, $50 million will be provided by a local bank, and an additional $100 million will be invested outside the agreement, Minister noted disclosing the source of funding. "The funds will be used to complete construction work at the mine and purchase the necessary equipment," he said.
As the minister said, 150 million dollars will be invested within the framework of the memorandum, of which 100 million will be in the form of EDB loans, 50 million will be provided by the local bank, and an additional 100 million will be invested outside the agreement, noted the minister, without disclosing the source of funding. "The funds will be used to complete construction work at the mine and purchase the necessary equipment," he said.
It was noted that within the framework of the transaction, the RA government will receive 12.5% of the company's shares, for which it will not pay anything, instead it will secure the transaction from certain risks.
Kerobyan stressed that the company will annually provide revenue from 30 to 40 billion drams, which will increase the income of the mining industry in Armenia by 20%.
In addition, according to the agreement, the communities adjacent to the mine will receive annual assistance from the company in the amount of $7 million.
At the same time, the Minister of Economy assured that the company has all the necessary permits to start work. <That is, there are no legislative prohibitions. All the necessary studies in accordance with the legislation of Armenia were carried out and all permits were obtained>, he stressed.
In turn, member of the Board of Directors of Lydian Armenia Geoffrey Coach, noted that the company has done everything necessary to provide the best technologies, high environmental standards and introduce leading international practices into the project.
<The project will give Armenia a direct economic effect in the form of tax revenues, payments, hundreds of jobs, and will significantly increase Armenia's GDP. In addition, thanks to the project, new businesses and services of ancillary services will be created>, he stressed.
It should be noted that the memorandum of understanding was signed by Armenian Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan, member of the Board of Directors of Lydian Armenia Geoffrey Coach, and Vice Chairman of the Management Board of the EDB Denis Ilin.
Ssince the end of 2018, the Amulsar gold mine has been blocked by environmental activists. Construction work on it had to be suspended.
In March 2022, Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan noted that if nothing interferes, the work of the Amulsar gold mine will be resumed, referring to the department's program of measures, which contains a provision on solving the Amulsar problem.
Earlier, before the change of beneficiaries, Lydian Armenia was a subsidiary of the British offshore Lydian International, which placed shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Then the company went through the process of delisting. As a result of the restructuring, the full stake in the company was transferred to the newly established Lydian Canada Ventures, owned by the U.S. firm Orion Mine Finance, and the Canadian company Osisko Gold Royalties. The total cost of the Amulsar project is $370 million. The estimated period of operation of the mine is 10 years and 4 months, while it is planned to produce an average of 200 thousand ounces of gold annually. The field is the second largest in Armenia. According to the company, the deposit contains about 73,733 kg of gold with an average grade of 0.78 g per ton, as well as 294,367 tons of silver with an average grade of 9.29 g per ton. It is located in the south- east of the country, 13 km from the resort town of Jermuk, in the interfluve of the Arpa and Vorotan rivers.
According to the RA Statistical Committee, a 3.2% decline was recorded in the mining industry and open pit development in Armenia in 2022 compared to 2021 (against a 0.8% decline a year earlier), with a volume of 517.4 billion drams.
