The Armenian Government intends to allocate $12.5 mln USD to Vanadzor city to solve the city’s issues, PM Hovik Abrahamyan said during his visit to Armenia’s Lori province on Saturday.

“We have planned to allocate $5 mln USD for the development and solution of the key issues of Vanadzor. We will also try to solve the issue of the ropeway, if a substantiated document is submitted. We will actually implement two important projects for Vanadzor: [allocating] $5 mln USD for solving the key issues of the city and another $7.5 mln USD to solve the garbage collection issue,” the MP said, Armenian News – NEWS.am correspondent in Lori reports.  

Having been robbed in the years following the earthquake, the ropeway doesn’t function currently. The Vanadzor citizens raised the issue of re-operating the ropeway as early as a year ago. The Mayor of Vanadzor Samvel Darbinyan had then said that two Russia-based brothers were interested in re-operating the ropeway.  The PM had instructed to present an investment program, noting that the Government would also try to take part in that issue.

Abrahamyan inquired on Saturday why the program wasn’t implemented, to which Darbinyan responded that state support was needed.

Afterwards, Hovik Abrahamyan visited industrial Avtogen M company, which produces gas-flame equipment. The company owners complained that the demand for the goods exported to Russia is great, but the company has faced problems due to the drop of the Russian ruble in the recent years and thus needs state support. To the PM’s question, what specific support they expect, one of the owners, Karen Grigoryan, said: “Either to extend the loan, provide subsidy, or lower the rates. We don’t know which one either.”

The aforementioned company has 130 employees. Upon the instruction of Hovik Abrahamyan, the issue will be discussed in the Ministry of Economy.

The PM visited also other companies in Lori province on Saturday.