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An audit of Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) Company will start within the next few days, Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan said in the resort town of Tsakhkadzor, in response to a question of participants of ‘Baze 2015’ Pan-Armenian youth gathering.

“The society will have the opportunity to get answers to all troubling questions,” he said.

The press service of Armenian government reports that the PM touched upon the power tariff rise in Armenia, noting that the government will express its position after Deloitte & Touche CIS Company presents its findings. The company will provide consulting services to Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) concerning the regulation of tariffs in energy sector. Deloitte & Touche CIS will start operating after the contract is signed.

The prime minister said the government will keep its promise to subsidize the increase in the power tariff by 6.93 drams until the completion of the audit.

The hiked electricity tariffs came into effect in Armenia on August 1. Earlier, Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) Company filed an application to Public Services Regulatory Commission of Armenia (PSRC) regarding an increase in electricity tariffs, a hike that the parliamentary opposition and civil society considered as unfounded and serving the interests of ENA. Until August 1, 2015 the daytime and night tariffs for population were 41.85 drams and 31.85 drams per KWh, respectively. The ENA proposed raising the tariffs to 58 and 48 drams respectively. But the Commission granted only partially the ENA application on a rise in tariffs. The power tariffs in Armenia have increased by 6.93 drams, not 17 drams.

President Serzh Sargsyan said at the June 27 consultation with officials responsible for the economic policy in Armenia that cancelling the decision on power tariff rise is “very dangerous”. For this reason the government will cover the tariff rise until the conclusion (of an audit of Electric Networks – editor), he said.

“If that conclusion [of the audit] confirms the price increase is well-based, from that moment on the consumers will begin paying the new tariff without having any suspicions. Should the conclusion confirm the increase had been groundless, the government would take measures to get refunds from the ENA on the amount surcharged, as well as bring to account those officials that failed on their duties»,” the president said noting that under such conditions the work that the government started a few months ago to change the owner of ENA will become a certainty, and the option of returning the company to the state and transferring it for competitive management is not ruled out.