ArmInfo. RA President Vahagn Khachaturyan signed a package of laws aimed at nationalizing Electric Networks of Armenia CJSC.
According to the presidential press service, amendments were signed to the laws "On the Public Services Regulatory Authority", "On Energy", "On Bankruptcy" and "On State Registration of Legal Entities, Separate Subdivisions of Legal Entities, Institutions and Individual Entrepreneurs".
The package was adopted at an extraordinary session of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia on July 3. It was developed by the ruling Civil Contract faction in the country. According to the draft laws, the authorized body will have the right to provide the Chairman of the Public Services Regulatory Commission with the right to take preventive measures in the event of problems in energy companies. Upon receiving a signal, the Chairman of the Public Services Regulatory Commission will have to initiate administrative proceedings. During this period, the Public Services Regulatory Commission may change the management of the companies by inviting a temporary manager with at least 5 years of experience in the energy sector or in management. The temporary manager will work until the end of the investigation period, following which the companies will either be offered an action plan to eliminate the violations or will be deprived of their license. In the latter case, the owners of the companies will have to sell them, and the government will retain a preferential right to purchase them for 3 months. If the owners refuse to sell within 2 months, an auction for the sale of their shares may be appointed administratively.
The package does not directly mention the company "Electric Networks of Armenia", although everyone understands that it is precisely about them.
Earlier, the Tashir Group of Companies, which includes ESA CJSC, issued a statement according to which Samvel Karapetyan's family had started an investment dispute with the Armenian authorities, which also includes an appeal to international arbitration.
The Tashir Group of Companies, headed by the arrested Samvel Karapetyan, acquired Electric Networks of Armenia CJSC from Inter RAO in September 2015. Earlier, Samvel Karapetyan noted that since 2016, when the Tashir Group of Companies acquired ownership of Electric Networks of Armenia, a total of about $900 million has been invested, $680 million of which was for modernization and $200 million for the creation of new capacities. The investments were made, among other things, through credit resources from international financial institutions, which led to the pledging of 100% of the shares of the CJSC.
ESA manages medium and low voltage distribution networks in Armenia, serving about 1 million subscribers.
