The Draft Law Setting Import Duties on Cement and Clinker Has Been Approved

The National Assembly of Armenia approved in the second reading and in full the draft law amending the Law on State Duties presented by the government, which proposes to set an import duty of 14,000 AMD for one ton of cement and 2,000 AMD for one ton of clinker, the raw material for cement.

Seventy-two out of 91 MPs present at the session voted in favor of the proposal, while 7 voted against and 3 abstained.

It should be noted that the government originally proposed raising the import duty for one ton of cement from 14,000 AMD to 25,000 AMD and introducing a fee of 9,000 AMD for the previously duty-free clinker per ton. However, the Parliamentary Economic Affairs Committee did not accept this proposal due to concerns that it might harm local producers. Instead, the MPs suggested keeping the duties at their previous levels and extending the term of the law, which expired in December 2020, causing both cement and clinker to be imported duty-free since January 1.

The government justifies its legislative initiative with the aim of protecting local production from imports and making local products competitive.

According to official statistics, the cement production figures in Armenia in 2020 were as follows: 500,000 tons by 'Ararat Cement', 100,000 tons by 'Shin Cement', 100,000 tons by 'Hrazdan Cement', and 200,000 tons imported from Iran.