ArmInfo. The mining industry's share of Armenia's GDP will reach a record 5.1% by the end of 2026, compared to the actual 3.1% registered in 2025, and 3% in 2024. This was announced on October 16 during the opening ceremony of the Mining Armenia Forum by Vardan Janyan, Chairman of the Mining and Metallurgy Association and First Deputy General Director of the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine (ZCMK).
At the same time, the industry itself will grow by 21.5% by the end of this year, with the expected growth of the Armenian economy at 6.7%. In this regard, the deputy head of ZCMK emphasized that in 2026-2027, the sector will provide a significant portion of GDP growth. In particular, according to him, in 2026, 26% of GDP will be provided by the mining industry.
At the same time, Janyan reported that by the end of the current year, the industry's exports will grow by 76.6%, while the overall volume of exports from Armenia is declining.
," he said, noting that the volume of export deliveries in 2026 will reach $1.9 billion, while in 2025, export volumes were over $1.35 billion.
In 2031, according to the head of the Association, the sector will be capable of generating $5 billion in exports, an impressive figure for the Republic of Armenia. For comparison, he noted that in 2021, the total export volume of the Republic of Armenia amounted to $2.6 billion, meaning that the industry will essentially generate more exports next year than the entire Armenian economy combined in 2021. Janyan also noted that in 2024, the share of mining exports amounted to 28% of total exports, and in 2027, this figure will reach 54%. He also touched on the sector's territorial coverage. According to him, only 0.15% of Armenia's territory is occupied by mining infrastructure. However, the sector accounts for 5.1% of GDP. For comparison, Janyan noted that the agricultural sector occupies 60% of the country's territory and accounts for 7.9% of GDP.
It is worth noting that the large international Mining Armenia Forum 2026 opened on October 16-17, bringing together representatives of dozens of mining and related companies from Armenia and abroad. The forum is being held for the third year in a row.
The forum will feature approximately 50 speakers, including representatives of international mining companies and financial institutions, investors, policymakers, sustainable development experts, technology providers, as well as representatives of academia and civil society.
The Mining Armenia Forum is organized by the Mining Forum Development Fund and the Mining and Metallurgy Association of Armenia. The forum's strategic sponsors are the country's largest mining players, the Zangezur Copper and Molybdenum Combine. and the gold mining company Lydian Armenia. The forum's main sponsors are Ameriabank CJSC and Teghout CJSC. According to the RA Statistics Committee, the mining sector grew by 24.3% year-on-year from January to August (versus a 0.8% decline a year ago), reaching 489.7 billion drams. In August alone, mining volumes increased by 6.3% to 67.6 billion drams.
