Epress.am News from Armenia
Public Services Regulatory Commission of Armenia (PSRC) has announced a competition, and the top 5 companies in the world specializing in establishment of tariffs for electricity have been invited to participate in it, Epress.am was told by PSRC spokesperson Mariam Stepanyan.
“Since President [Serzh Sargsyan] stated on June 27 the need to increase public trust in the Commission, and that there should be no doubts about the tariff established by PSRC, we've invited a reputable consulting company, which is to examine and assess the extent of the validity of the established tariff,” Stepanyan said.
The PSRC spokesperson did not name the five companies participating in the competition; however, she stated that they were all American. To the question as to whether there would not be a conflict of interests if the PSRC selected the winner, Stepanyan responded by saying that the chosen company would be presented to the Government for approval. The Government, the spokesperson added, is to pay for services provided by the winner from the reserve fund of the RA state budget.
These inspections, as stated by Stepanyan, are not related to the ongoing international audit of the national electricity distribution company “Electric Networks of Armenia.” This audit, according to her, is carried out under the supervision of the RA Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.
Note, Public Services Regulatory Commission of Armenia decided on June 17, 2015, to increase the tariff for electricity supplied to consumers by 6.93 drams. Starting August 1, 2015, a kilowatt-hour of energy will cost 48.78 drams during the daytime (previously – 41.85 drams), and 38.78 drams – the nighttime (previously – 31.85).