Illegal Decisions Made Regarding Amulsar Exploitation, Says Bagratyan

None of the mining sites currently in active exploitation are contributing any royalties, meaning they are not operating profitably, said Sergey Bagratyan, chairman of the investigative committee examining the legality, justification, and credibility of financial and other reports, while presenting the committee's findings at the National Assembly.

He added that during the committee's working discussions, environmental expert Nazeli Vardanyan assured that mining in our country has been, and is being carried out, in violation of several laws and international conventions.

“According to the environmental lawyer, the previous authorities made illegal decisions regarding the exploitation of Amulsar. The water code and the law on Lake Sevan prohibit mining activities in the basin area of the lake. According to Armenian legislation and international conventions, mining is not allowed in areas inhabited by species listed in the 'Red Book' as well as various bird species. The speaker deemed the mining near Jermuk unacceptable,” Bagratyan noted.

He also added that they have been informed by the Office of the Prosecutor General of Armenia that facts of illegal use of subsoil by “Lydian Armenia” LLC have been recorded as a result of inspections conducted at the company.