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The Armenian government will subsidize part of the increased electricity price for small and medium sized enterprises in the period from August 1 to the completion of a planned audit of Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) Company. Subsidies will be paid from extra-budgetary funds, according to a decision announced at the government session today.

Enterprises that consume up to 500 KWh a month will get government subsidies for 250 KWh a month as compensation for the increased power tariffs.

Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan said the issue was discussed today with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.

“People complained that small and medium enterprises are unable to operate so we submitted this draft,” the PM said.

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 on June 17 the Commission granted only partly the ENA application on a rise in tariffs. The power tariffs in Armenia have increased by 6.93 drams, not 17 drams.

As was reported, 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 was “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.