Tuesday, April 1 2014

The scientific-and-technical and industrial potential of Armenia may become part of Russia's policy of industrialism, Vazgen Safaryan, Head of the Union of Native Producers, told reporters, Tuesday. 

He specified that there are several dozens of idling enterprises in Armenia and their modernization, including on Russia's investments, would make it possible for the country to restore its industrial capacities. 

According to Safaryan, the country's industrial potential is concentrated in the capital city (nearly 40.8% or some 500 bln of the total industrial produce in the country). Syunik region is on the second place with16.5% (200 bln drams), Kotayk region is the third with 13.4% (166 bln drams). Ararat region is the 4th with 123 bln drams (10% of total industrial produce in the country in 2013). Then goes Lori region with what Safaryan thinks inadmissible level of industrial production - 75.2 bln drams (6% of total). In Shirak region, the industrial produce for the last year totaled 42.6 bln drams (3.4%) with a 3.5% decline comparing to the indicator for the previous year, he said.

The expert thinks Yerevan should be unloaded from industrial facilities.  As for the problems of enterprises in the regions, he said that businessmen in the regions need the government assistance, first of all. Part of them, particularly, producers of confectionery, ask electric power subsidies. Developers, in turn, demand unloading the market from the building materials delivered from the capital city and allowing the regional producers to use their own building materials. 
Safaryan  promised the local businessmen to raise their problems at the government to find optimal solutions to them.