by Carl Johannes Muth
Armenia will soon announce a tender for the construction of a 40-50 MW solar plant near the village of Masrik in Gegharkunik province. According to Tamara Babayan, director of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Foundation, all 40 companies that attended the Energy Week 2017 in Yerevan in January have expressed their willingness to participate in the bidding process.
The project is the main component of a US$58 million worth program started in 2015 to boost alternative energy sources in the country. The six-year program is directed by the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Foundation, a non-governmental organization whose mission is to facilitate investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy in Armenia, and supported by the Climate Investment Funds, the Armenian Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank.
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As stated in the press release from Wednesday, construction is expected to begin in 2017 and for the plant to be ready for operation by 2020, which will make it the country’s first-ever solar power plant.
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Three years to build a standard solar farm from breaking ground? Experienced developers in India take six months. Armenia is landlocked, without its own oil and gas reserves, and has relations with its neighbours ranging from wary (Georgia) to cold war (Azerbaijan). A large solar programme should be a no-brainer.
The majority of Armenia’s energy production is already foreign owned. So though it is fantastic and commendable that Armenia is finally looking into large scale solar projects, it should be state owned.