Ara Simonyan: OR construction program in Armenia was postponed as result of crisisOctober 23, 2010 - 16:35 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenian Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Ara Simonyan said that oil refinery (OR) construction is a trilateral program among the Armenian Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Gazprom and Iranian Ministry of Petroleum. The program discussion has started since 2007, Simonyan said during a discussion of the 2011 draft state budget in relevant parliamentary committees. According to Simonyan, provision of acceptable schemes for raw materials supply and long-term supplies are basic unresolved problems in the OR construction program. “Thus, it was decided to implement the first stage of the program, which is related to import of finished oil products. The program is implemented in a bilateral format – Armenia-Iran. It is expected that a progress will be recorded in this direction during the Armenian Prime Minister’s visit to Iran,” the Deputy Minister said, adding that an agreement of shareholders has been signed, with the program to be launched this year. “The program costs several billion USD. It was postponed as a result of the crisis. As for supply of oil products, it is a rather realistic program, which can be implemented shortly,” said Simonyan. He added that the oil pipeline’s length from Tabriz to Aragats makes 110km and 265km on Iran’s and Armenia’s territories respectively. Ara Simonyan noted that a terminal is constructed near Aragats, what will allow securing the country’s reserve of oil products consumption for 10-12 days. Based on the results of recent discussions, 8mm-diameter oil pipeline will be constructed, which is enough to secure Armenia’s internal consumption until 2037. Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. |