I Expect Liquefied Gas Prices to Decrease in the Coming Days, Gegham Gevorgyan

Due to weather conditions, Lars was closed, but it has now reopened, and supplies have started. I anticipate that gas prices will begin to decrease in a few days. This was stated by Gegham Gevorgyan, the head of the Commission on Protection of Economic Competition and Consumer Rights, during a conversation with journalists after a government meeting, addressing the recent deficit of liquefied gas and the sharp rise in prices.

“In Armenia, liquefied gas is supplied by over 100 economic operators, none of which exceed even a 10% market share, meaning the market is highly competitive, and theoretically, no one can abuse a dominant position. Moreover, it is legally prohibited to initiate any processes involving an economic operator with less than a 10% share globally. If the market is highly competitive and all operators can compete with one another, it means that there is no large economic operator capable of creating artificial deficits or problems, which indicates that any authority dealing with competition issues cannot intervene,” he said.

The head of the commission also added that they are currently studying the market in detail. “Gas was supplied from the Russian Federation and did not arrive, it was scarce, which is why those who had a small quantity of gas increased their prices. Imagine if 10,000 people are engaged in some business, theoretically, it means they cannot agree among themselves on anti-competitive agreements. A holder of a 7%, 8%, or 9% share cannot dictate an artificial price,” Gegham Gevorgyan noted.

It is noteworthy that in recent days, liquefied gas prices have sharply increased, reaching between 260-300 drams.