YEREVAN. – According to the 2014 data, only ten of the 26 metallic mines in Armenia, and which have licenses for mining, give production.

The largest is the Kajaran mine, which ensured 60 percent of mining in Armenia and 80 percent of the country’s budget income from mining. Teghut, Agarak, Sotk, and Kapan mines significantly fall behind. The respective contribution by others is practically insignificant.

Economist Vahagn Khachatryan thinks there is no sense in speaking about the stability of economic development against this backdrop, where the priority of mining field is not substantiated in terms of economy.

“It’s the only field where the amount of paid taxes is 70 percent more than the share of mining in the [country’s] economy,” Khachatryan noted.

According to the Armenian National Statistical Service, a growth of 5.2 percent was recorded in the country’s mining industry in 2015. At the same time, the mining of metal ore increased by 51.5 percent.

“In the past we could speak about high rates of the GDP,” Vahagn Khachatryan told EcoLur NGO. “Now, the opportunities for the economic growth are not used while damage to the environment has escalated.”

Also, he made a reference to the 2007-2011 report by the Ministry of Nature Protection, and which notes that the assessment of the damage caused by economic development makes up 6 to 10 percent in Armenia.